Welcome, Zara Lewis, contributor at HighStylife, back to the blog today. Zara always has wonderful tips for pet owners. Today she is going to give us tips on how to keep a clean pet-friendly home (and keep your furbabies!)
Those of you who have had the joy of growing up with pets, you most likely have no idea what it’s like to live in a home that is entirely pet smell-free, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing at all. For most of us, our dogs, parrots, cats, and other companions don’t stink, but they do have a distinct smell we even stop noticing after a while. However, those who visit our homes certainly don’t, especially if they don’t have pets of their own.
You can make your home more comfortable for the guests who don’t know the pleasures of sharing their existence with animals, and elevate your hygiene game to a new level with the help of the following tips!
De-fur your home
The number-one guilty party for the smell accumulating in your home is the fur. Unless you have a Sphynx cat, in which case you have no coat to worry about, most other pet owners need to make sure to keep the fur away from furniture, clothes, and carpets, since it causes the dirt and odors to build up over time.
Depending on how often and how much your pets shed, you can use various tools to keep your home clean. From specialized brooms that collect fur more efficiently, all the way to the classic vacuum cleaner, you should always consider investing in high-quality tools that will last for years.
Choose the right fabrics
When it comes to your couch and other furniture your pets have access to, you should choose your fabrics wisely. This simple choice can make a difference between ease of cleaning and having a messy-looking room even when you do your absolute best to keep the fur away.
Microfiber is a favorite choice among pet parents, while anything too sensitive such as silk or velvet will easily attract pet hair and make it difficult for you to clean. If you can opt for some covers and throws that can be washed in a machine so that even if you don’t have enough time to clean before your guests arrive, you have a stylish and functional throw for your couch.
Purify your indoor air
Even if you find the perfect system to keep your home and furniture clean, you should remember that odors and dirt tend to be present even in the air itself. In addition to regularly airing your rooms, you should consider investing in a HEPA air purifier that will not just remove any unpleasant smells, but also help reduce allergens, such as pet dander, from your indoor air.
The HEPA filters are not just top of the line when it comes to detoxing your air, but they’re also amazingly quiet, so you can use them safely in your bedroom as well as your entire home. An added perk is that air purifiers remove other pollutants such as mold and dust from your home, helping you retain your hygiene levels high despite living with pets.
Simplify your interior
Sometimes all it takes is a powerful vacuum cleaner, while sometimes you can cut your cleaning time in half by removing carpeting altogether. After all, minimalism in interior design is back in style (as if it ever wanted in popularity), and you can use a robot vacuum for continuous hair removal, without worrying about any fur getting stuck in the weave of the carpet fabric.
Using smooth furniture fabrics such as leather is also a great option as it helps you clean faster, although it may be a challenge to keep those claw marks away. Curtains also tend to absorb plenty of odors in your home, so replacing them with window blinds can make things much easier for you.
Don’t neglect the essentials
Some of these may elicit a “duh” reaction, appropriately so, but some pet owners may lead hectic lives and thus neglect some of these basic steps in home maintenance. For instance, how often do you wash your bed linens, pet bedding, as well as your clothes, empty your trash, and wash your pet’s bowls? All of these collect odor easily, and sticking to a schedule will help you reduce the odor present in your home.
Vacuuming is one of the simplest, although also the dullest ways to keep the fur from getting stuck everywhere, and using cleaning products that help remove pet odor also makes it easier for you to prevent the smell to linger.
Keep your pets squeaky clean
Of course, you also need to take care of the cause in order to mitigate the consequence! If your pooch has a foul smell, then no matter how much you keep your home clean, if he or she doesn’t get bathed and groomed often enough, then you’re in for trouble.
Do your best to wash your pooch’s paws every time you come back from a walk, comb their coat every day to remove any excess fur, and keep that appointment to wash them with a pleasant shampoo that is a good match for their skin needs.
Believe it or not, no dog likes to reside in a smelly room, and even though not all dogs enjoy the combing sessions, you’ll do them a favor by keeping the excess fur away and their skin healthy. By keeping your home clean and your pet groomed, you’ll not only make your guests happy, but also enjoy your space much more, and help your pets stay healthy and comfortable!
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