A home with pets can absolutely be a clean, hygienic and tidy home, too. It’s only when you let your pets rule the roost, that a clean home becomes a home that looks as messy as it smells!
Have clear rules about where your pets can, and cannot, go in the home
If your pets have a free run of your home, then you only have yourself to blame if you end up finding pongy deposits left dotted about the place, or puddles of pee behind sofa’s and under beds.
If your pets have restricted access to your home, then make them, and any other members of your household, understand exactly where those boundaries are.
Groom your pets regularly and try to pick up loose fur as often as possible
This advice is not for the furless or the feathered; but regular grooming will prevent loose pet hair from attaching itself to your carpets and upholstery.
A good quality vacuum cleaner is one obvious solution for ridding your home and furniture of pet hair, but for areas which maybe harder to reach or upon which the pet hair has become truly embedded, you could try wearing a pair of damp rubber gloves and brushing the area with your fingers. The fur should wash off of the gloves easily, ready to be used again.
If possible, dedicate an outer area of your home as a feeding place
Our pets don’t always have the best table manners, and we’re often left cleaning up spilled biscuits or food juices that have worked their way out of the bowl, and onto the floor. Having a space that isn’t directly in your home to feed your pets, is ideal (especially if it contains a sink for washing the dirty bowls), but if you do have to feed your pet right inside your home, keep the bowl on a slip proof mat and don’t be tempted to leave food waste lying there as it will only become stickier, harder to clean and smellier as the day wears on.
To avoid your pets’ food bowls from smelling and harboring bacteria, clean them with hot water and plenty of dishwashing liquid, but don’t use your family tea towel to dry them with.
Choose your pets bedding, wisely
It’s often the comfiest, most squidgy looking pet beds that are the trickiest to keep clean, so try and purchase a bed and bedding that can easily be washed regularly. Baskets can be wiped down and shook out to get rid of dirt and dust articles that have built up in it, and bedding that fits into your washing machine, can be cleaned and hung out to dry once a week or once a month, depending on how it looks and smells! If you don’t have the time or the inclination to do so, you could always sprinkle baking soda onto the bed or bedding (or both) which will help to keep it smelling fresh.
Hire a professional cleaning service
Having pets isn’t always easy, in fact it’s often hard work, and cleaning up after them can be time consuming. Why not hire a professional to help keep your home clean; allowing you to enjoy spending time with your pets, instead of worrying about fur covered carpets, stinky deposits and muddy paw prints?