If you have a dog
or cat, living with pet hair and fur is a fact of life. But there are ways you
can make it easier to keep it under control. Not only will these tips make it
easier to keep your home clean, if you implement them all, you will likely
reduce your allergy symptoms as well!
Here are the top secrets of a professional organizer who also owns three Maine
Coone cats and regularly pet sits my neighbor's two dogs!
1. Avoid carpeting. Hardwood, tile,
and even linoleum floors are MUCH easier to keep clean and odor-free. Use area
rugs that can easily be replaced every few years.
2. Use Woolite for Pets Carpet and
Upholstery cleaner to spot clean rugs and furniture when you sweetie has an
accident or vomits. It not only leaves the carpet and sofa fresh smelling, it
always gets out ALL the stain.
3. Use Febreeze about once a month or
so to keep fabrics such as throw pillows, area rugs and curtains fresher
smelling.
4. When buying furniture, curtains and
clothing, avoid microfibers and other fabrics that are magnets for pet hair.
When I want to clean the sofa of pet hair, all I need to do is put on a pair of
microfiber pants. I sit on the sofa for a few minutes, stand up, and I look like
a cat! Leather or leatherette are great. Twill, denim, cotton and rayons are
pretty easy to get pet hair off of. Chenille is not.
5. Get several great pet hair brushes.
Keep one in a box or drawer in any room that has lots of fabric, like the
bedroom and living room. We get ours at Linens N Things - they are called Majik
Brushes. We brush the furniture and dining room chairs every few days or as
needed. Plus, by having one near the front door, we can always brush ourselves
(and our guests who may have become pet hair magnets) before leaving the house!
6. Get at least one or two hand held
vacuums. Keep them handy wherever pet fur accumulates the most. If possible, get
a HEPA-rated vacuum. Smaller vacuums are great for quick touch ups when you have
hardwood floors. All the pet hair that travels to the corners comes right up! We
also keep a hand held in our cleaning supply closet where the litter box lives
to clean up the litter the cats track out of the box. My favorite vacuums are
the Black and Decker ones that use the same rechargeable batteries as all the
other B&D tools. We keep an extra set of batteries and charger by each vacuum so
we never run out of power.
7.
For pet food, the clear SNAPWARE® containers (we
got ours at Target) are awesome. They are easy to open, easy to fill AND easy to
keep a scoop inside. Whatever you do, don't buy a container without testing if
first to see how it opens and closes. So many of them are complicated and
difficult to open. At least make sure you keep the receipt just in case you
don't find it easy to use.
8. For dogs, keep paper towels, pop-up
wipes, and pooper scooper bags near the door where you exit to walk the dog. You
can even use plastic grocery bags as pooper scoopers. If you have a little
hallway with a table near your exit, you can keep a the dog's leashes, collars,
paper towels, bags, etc. in a nice decorative basket or box
9. Get dogs groomed professionally as
needed to keep them and your home smelling better.
10. Here's a tip from a friend of mine
with 3 large dogs, use easy to remove and wash slipcovers for all furniture and
keep special dog blankets anywhere the dogs are allowed to nap.
Organizing to have everything you need to keep your home free of pet hair and
smells will make it easier to clean and give you more time to enjoy your fur
babies!
© 2006 Ariane Benefit, Neat Living All rights reserved.
About the Author
Ariane Benefit is
a professional organizer, speaker, and author of the popular Neat Living Blog at
http://www.NeatLiving.net which provides free organizing tips, home makeover
photos and much more. Her mission is to inspire people to simplify, clear
clutter, and organize so they can live a life they love! She provides simple
practical organizing solutions for people who just want a neater, simpler, less
stressful life – not a perfect one. She can be found on the web at
http://www.neatliving.org
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