Top ways to clean your home when you have pets

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Last Updated on February 5, 2020 by karissa ancell

It’s the final day of the spring cleaning series. Today I want to share my favorite ways to clean your home when you have pets. It can be tricky to keep a clean home when you have pets. I know this to be true because we have a lot of pets in our home. We have seven pets! Yes, 7! We have two cats, two dogs, three turtles.

Many of you probably have some pets, probably not as many as us and I thought I would put together some of the tricks and tips that we have found really helpful in having a tidy home with lots of pets. These ways to clean your home when you have pets will hopefully make it easier for you to keep a clean home while you have pets. 

1 Get used to vacuuming.

This will be a very important step especially if you have pets that shed. Our older dog we use to have was horrible when it came to shedding. We would need to pull out the vacuum multiple times a week. At least three or four days a week in the main areas of the home and the master bedroom since that’s where she spent the majority of her time.

Our two dogs now are not quite as bad but they still shed a good amount and we need to regularly vacuum. The puggle isn’t the big shedder but the husky sheds a bunch. As you can see from this picture in the car.

I’ve found it is important to get a good vacuum that can keep up with the task and is easy to use. If it is difficult or a hassle to use we wouldn’t want to do it and then it would lead to more hair and issues.

We have tried many different vacuums over the years and have had some great ones that worked really well and a few that didn’t work and couldn’t keep up with having to deal with pet fur. We’ve had this vacuum the last year and if you have pets it’s a great option and picks up fur really well. 

By far regular vacuuming is what helps us to keep up with having pets and still having a tidy home. With our dog who non-stop sheds plus the other pets who shed as well if we don’t run the vacuum every couple days at least the floors look horrible and it’s a mess. So depending on how many pets you have and the type will determine how often you will need to.

2. Using a carpet cleaner

Our home is mainly carpeted and although our pets go to the bathroom where they are supposed to most of the time it doesn’t always work out that way. Especially when we got our puppy. The first few months were a challenge of getting him to go outside and be house trained.

I’m cute but I’m a mess maker

So having a carpet cleaner really helped out during those months of getting him trained. We could clean up the carpet or any spots on furniture right after he went on it. I love having our own carpet cleaner and we use it all the time so it is worth having when you have pets and kids running around.

Having our own carpet cleaner and a good vacuum was an expense we had to save for but they were important for us to have in order to keep the house clean and have our pets. I made sure to do a lot of research to make sure that we bought the best products for the job.

3. Clean out their spaces regularly

For different pets, these spaces will be different. In our home, this is the turtles’ tank and the litter boxes for the cat. The cat’s and dogs go about the house but the turtles are mostly in their cage.

So it’s important to keep those spaces clean. It’s important for the pets to have clean space to live in as well as it will begin to smell and dirty the home if I let them get too dirty. 

So we regularly clean up all the spaces. It can be a lot of work to keep up all the pets spaces. We made a commitment to having pets though so we do the work. 

4. Keep your pets Clean

Make sure to bathe and brush your pets regularly. Bathing your dogs will help to reduce smells.

If battling fur is your number biggest pet-related cleaning issue, then brushing is the best and most simple thing you can do. Daily brushing, preferably outside, will allow you to be proactive about your pet’s shedding and keep the fur build-up in your home from getting too out of control.

We use this pet brush and it works really great and our dogs like it. You can also use it with cats but our cats are not fans of brushing.

5. Have realistic expectations

I think if you have pets you need to be realistic that they come with a mess, especially when they are young. That means accidents in the house, toys out, chewing on things. It will take time to break them of bad behaviors and teach them to behave. Our puppy is just over one-year-old and he has really improved in the last few months but he is still learning.

I’m aware that by having all these pets we have to expect to clean up after them and frequently vacuum and clean carpets. As well as our home has the distinct smell of a home that has pets. It’s something we work on a lot, though.

So if you don’t have pets and are thinking of getting one or more. It’s important to be realistic and know that they come with a mess especially in the beginning. So go into it knowing that and being aware that you will have to add some extra work to your cleaning routine. 

My home is always going to smell and look like it has pets in it because we do. I don’t have a problem with that. Just like my home is going to have my daughter’s stuff around. I expect it and try to make things look decent and be clean but our home is lived in and used. 

6. Figure out how to mask the smells of having pets

The main way to deal with smells is to deal with the mess. If the home is cleaned a lot especially the floors and any blankets left on couches and stuff that help a lot with the smell but it doesn’t cover up everything.

We have tried a lot of different products to help neutralize and cover-up pet smells. I thought I would share what has worked well for us. 

When you vacuum it can be really helpful to use this carpet deodorizer. It really helps to get more lifted out of the carpets and has a great scent. 

I really hope that these tips for dealing with the messes that come along with being a pet owner prove helpful for you. I love having pets and they are a big part of our family. So it’s worth keeping up with the tasks of cleaning so that they are comfortable and happy. and our home doesn’t get too dirty.