Sharing your life with pets can be a wonderful thing, but it can be a smelly thing, too! If there are dogs in your home, there are few ways to avoid them smelling at least a bit, but there are a few things you can do to minimize the pong and prevent it from taking over your entire home.
Check out these 8 ways to achieve a harmonious aroma in your pet-filled home:
- Wash their bed(s) regularly
As long as your dog’s bed is washable (if it isn’t, you might want to swap it for one that is), you can have it cleaned as often as necessary, and this will almost certainly reduce the poochy pong in your home.
- Wash their toys and accessories regularly
Throws and blankets can help keep your furniture smelling fresh if Fido frequently sleeps on them, but you must make sure to wash them as soon as they start to smell or begin to look grubby. You should also wash their toys, collars and leashes, and it can help to add a dash of apple cider vinegar to the detergent to help neutralize pet odors.
- Groom your pet
Bathing is great for dogs, but you should be careful to avoid over bathing, as this can strip their coat of its essential oils. Bathe your dog once a month (or more often if they get very dirty) but groom them regularly to keep them smelling fresh for longer.
- Clean floors, carpets and upholstery
Regularly vacuum and mop your floors to wipe away dirty paw prints and lingering smells, along with upholstery, that way you’ll get rid of pet dander, dirt and hair that may be trapped in the fibers.
- Locate and clean lingering stains/odors
It may be that there are a couple of spots in your home that you thought you’d cleaned thoroughly – perhaps your dog peed or vomited there – but you’d be surprised how some stains can linger. You may have to get down on your hand and knees and give the floor a good sniff to locate the source, but once you find it, you’ll be able to get rid of the smell for good by cleaning it again with a special odor neutralizing product, or a combination of vinegar and baking soda for a more natural solution.
- Make bicarbonate of soda your friend
Bicarbonate of soda is great for neutralizing smells, and can be sprinkled onto carpets overnight before vacuuming, or simply left in an open container near your dogs bed.
- Wipe dirty paws
It can be really helpful to keep a towel and a mat inside the entrance to your home, so that you can wipe your dogs paws before they trail mud and goodness knows what else through your home. It can also help to keep your dog’s paws smelling clean, which in turn, will make your home less pongy.
- Dry soggy dogs off
There’s nothing worse than the smell of a wet dog, and if your dog has been swimming or got wet in the rain, you must dry them off thoroughly to prevent your furniture and carpets from becoming tainted with the smell.
For busy households with pets, have you considered hiring a cleaner to help keep your home smelling fresh? With a variety of schedules and budgets to suit all needs, a professional cleaner can make a huge difference to the overall cleanliness of your home, especially if you share it with dogs.
