Our pets bring us a lot of joy, but they also add to our workloads by shedding their fur all over our living space. Dog and cat hair has this amazing ability to stick to literally any surface, bringing any house-proud owner in cold sweats.
As a dog owner myself in the family home it’s a problem we had to deal with almost daily, but there are some really clever solutions out there for cleaning up problem dog hair from around the house.
However, there are some very good ways of controlling the fur problem, thus keeping your carpets, upholstery, throws and clothes looking spotless.
How To Deal With Problem Dog Shedding In Your Home
First of all, make sure you brush your pet regularly. This will minimize the amount of hair they shed, and one session of pet grooming can considerably contain the problem.
Secondly, some surfaces are much easier to clean than others. You might want to consider swapping wall-to-wall carpets with hard floors (wood, tiles etc) which can be simply mopped, wiping all the fur off. Similarly, leather sofas require less work to keep them spotless.
If however you can’t imagine living in a space with no rugs or soft furnishings, there are still ways to keep them fur-free.
Firstly, many vacuum-cleaner manufacturers offer at least one model specifically designed to efficiently remove pet-fur. Look into getting one of those and you’ll be surprised at just how much fur gets sucked in into them!
Alternatively, if you only have a small surface to hoover (pets bed/ favorite rug etc) or don’t want to splash out on a new appliance, try these tricks. Wrap some sticky tape around your hand, sticky side up.
Then run your hand over the surface to be cleaned – fur will stick to your hand. If you have a pumice stone lurking somewhere in your bathroom, that can help too! Run it over the rug, and it will make all the stuck on hair resurface.
The hair can then be easily hoovered or picked out by hand. Finally use a squeegee – run it over your carpet or sofa, and the rubber will pick any stray pet hair up.
If you have many throws and cushions scattered around the house, your pets probably favor them as the best spots to have their nap on. You can try any of the above tips to clean those surfaces. Many washing machines come with a special setting for pet hair removal – if this is a particular problem for you, it might be worth investing in one of them.
What’s The Best Dog Hair Remover For Clothes?
Finally, to keep your clothes hair-free, the sticky tape trick will work here too. However you might find lint rolls more convenient to use – you can keep one by your main door to make sure you always look spotless before leaving home!