Top Strategies on How to Keep Your House Clean with Dogs

A dog lover’s guide to maintaining a super clean home

Table of Contents

• Key Takeaways
• Create a Dog-Friendly Entryway
• Tackle Pet Hair with the Right Tools
• Protect Your Furniture and Floors
• Maintain a Regular Cleaning Routine
• Groom Your Dog Regularly
• Invest in Air Purification and Odor Control
• Clean Up Accidents Quickly and Efficiently
• Organize Your Pet’s Belongings
• Use Pet Barriers to Limit Access
• Train Your Dog to Keep a Clean Home
• Summary

If you’re wondering how to keep house clean with dogs, the secret is simple strategies that deliver results. We’ve got you covered with a guide that tackles the furry challenges head-on. From managing shed hair to maintaining fresh-smelling rooms, these tried and tested tips will help you enjoy a spotless home alongside your beloved pets.

Key Takeaways

• Keep a dog-friendly entryway with mats, towels, and storage for dog-walking / play accessories to minimize dirt and debris being tracked into the house.
• Use specific grooming tools like pet-specific vacuums and lint rollers to tackle dog hair / fur, and protect your furniture and floors with pet-friendly materials and regular nail trims.
• Maintain a regular cleaning routine with the aid of technology like robot vacuums, invest in air purifiers for odor control, and clean any pet accidents swiftly with enzyme-based cleaners.

Create a Dog-Friendly Entryway

First impressions matter, and that’s true for your home too. A well-organized, dog-friendly entryway can be a game-changer in keeping your house clean with dogs.

1. Start by positioning a pet-friendly rug or mat at the entrance. This will prevent your dogs, especially a muddy dog, from tracking dirt throughout the house.
2. Keeping by the door (in a closet, bench baskets, shelf, or hook) for wiping your dog’s paws can save you from many muddy paw prints.
3. Add hooks for hanging leashes, harnesses, dog jackets/coats, towels for muddy paws, etc.

Creating a dog-friendly entryway is not just about being organized. It’s about minimizing the amount of dirt and debris that dogs can bring into the house. With these simple tips, you can keep your entryway tidy and ready to welcome both human and furry guests!

Tackle Pet Hair with the Right Tools

With dogs, you know that dog hair and fur can be a constant battle. With the right tools, you can effectively tackle this issue. One of the key players is a high-quality, pet-specific vacuum cleaner. They’re essential for maintaining cleanliness in homes with dogs, even those with small or non-shedding breeds. Many vacuums come with special attachments designed for various surfaces, and some even feature anti-tangle technology to prevent hair wrap.

Some recommended tools for dealing with pet hair are:

• Vacuum cleaner with pet-specific attachments
• Lint roller or brush

Protect Your Furniture and Floors

Keeping your furniture and floors in top shape while living with dogs can be a challenge. However, with the right choices and practices, you can protect your furniture and floors.

Furniture

When it comes to furniture, consider materials like:

• Microfiber: stain-resistant and does not attract dog hair, making clean-up easy
• Leather: less likely to attract pet hair or incite scratching, though it’s prone to showing scratch marks from larger dogs

You may also want to purchase a dedicated dog bed for your pup, which helps to keep him off furniture completely.

In addition to the material, the color of your furniture can also play a role in keeping your house clean. Darker colored furniture can conceal dirt and stains, making them beneficial for homes with pets. You can also consider textured finishes or patterned prints on furniture to help hide stains.

Floors

Shifting focus to floors, using a silicone pet bowl mat can safeguard your hardwood floors from spills and water damage. And don’t forget about your dog’s nails. Keeping your dog’s nails trimmed is essential to prevent scratches and maintain the condition of hardwood floors. By following these tips, you can keep your furniture and floors looking their best!

Maintain a Regular Cleaning Routine

A regular cleaning routine is critical in maintaining a clean house with dogs. One way to do this is by utilizing a robot vacuum cleaner daily. This automatic vacuum cleaner can assist in maintaining a house free of dog hair and dirt, saving you from regular sweeping and vacuuming. If you have hard-surface floors, consider using a Wet-Dry Vacuum cleaner.

Beyond regular vacuuming, floors should be deep cleaned multiple times a week using naturally derived cleaners. This not only ensures cleanliness but also the safety of pets and children. And if you have carpets or rugs, consider investing in a carpet cleaning machine. This can help manage pet stains and hair effectively.

Maintaining a regular cleaning routine might sound like a lot of work. But with the right tools and practices, it can become an easy and efficient part of your daily life, contributing to a cleaner home environment.

Groom Your Dog Regularly

Maintaining a clean home with dogs goes beyond the cleanliness of the house, it also extends to grooming your dogs. Regular grooming is essential to reducing dirt and odor in the house. Bathing your dog, for instance, can make a significant difference. And after bathing, wrapping the dog with old towels or a dog bathrobe helps contain moisture and reduces the spread of wet dirt.

But, grooming doesn’t stop at bathing.

• Brushing your dog’s coat is equally important. Grooming gloves facilitate brushing while capturing loose hair directly onto the glove, making the process less messy.
• If your dog has thick fur, consider using a de-shedding and detangling brush.

Washing pet bedding weekly with a natural detergent is also crucial for eliminating dander and odors.

Invest in Air Purification and Odor Control

When striving to keep your house clean with dogs, air quality plays a significant role. Air purifiers can play a significant role in maintaining a clean and healthy living environment. They can reduce airborne pet hair and dander from settling on surfaces, making your cleaning tasks easier. Moreover, they remove pet dander from the air, which is beneficial for people with allergies or asthma.

But air purifiers do more than just clean the air. They also help to reduce and eliminate odors in the home that are caused by pets. So, if you’re concerned about that dog smell lingering in your home, an air purifier can be a great solution.

Clean Up Accidents Quickly and Efficiently

Inevitably, accidents occur when you have pets around. But it’s how you respond to these accidents that can make all the difference in keeping your house clean. The key is to act fast.

1. For fresh pet stains, it’s best to first absorb as much liquid as possible using paper towels and newspaper.
2. Once you’ve done that, an enzyme-based cleaning spray is your best friend. These sprays break down the odor-causing bacteria, making them highly effective for pet stains.
3. After cleaning, apply a high-quality pet odor neutralizer to eliminate any residual urine smells from carpets.

And what about those challenging, set-in stains? In such cases, renting or buying a carpet cleaning machine can be an effective method for deep cleaning the soiled area. Remember, the quicker you act, the easier it will be to clean up accidents and maintain a clean and fresh-smelling home.

Organize Your Pet’s Belongings

In the quest to maintain a clean home with pets, organization is paramount. Having a designated area, like a mudroom or laundry room, for pet storage can centralize all pet supplies, making them easily accessible. An all-in-one cabinet for pet supplies with food bins, hooks, and baskets can keep various pet-related items neatly organized.

Feeding can often be a messy business. To manage this, consider using a built-in feeding station in a lower cabinet. This can help manage the mess from food and water spills, contributing to a neater home. And don’t forget about those dog toys! They should be cleaned regularly using a safe cleaner, and then rinsed with water. Using baskets for toy organization can help keep the living space tidy and pet toys off the floor.

Use Pet Barriers to Limit Access

To keep specific areas of your house clean with dogs, pet barriers or gates can serve as a practical strategy. They come in various styles including hardware-mounted, pressure-mounted, and freestanding enclosures, catering to different household spaces and pet behaviors. These gates can prevent dogs from accessing areas that are prone to messes or damage, such as kitchens or rooms with delicate carpets. They can also be instrumental in keeping dogs away from areas designated for other pets, like cat litter boxes.

Moreover, after completing crate training, pet gates offer a gentle transition for dogs to more freedom in the house while still limiting access to the entire home. By using pet barriers, you can maintain a cleaner home and avoid potential messes.

Train Your Dog to Keep a Clean Home

Educating your dog extends beyond teaching them basic commands like sit, stay, or fetch. It can also be about teaching them to contribute to a cleaner home. Using positive reinforcement consistently can guide dogs towards behavior that contributes to a cleaner home environment. This includes introducing pets to gated areas with positive reinforcement like treats and attention to encourage good behavior.

Basic obedience training can prevent messes and promote cleanliness. Some commands to teach your dog include:

• ‘Sit’
• ‘Stay’
• ‘Come’
• ‘Leave it’

Consistent training and positive reinforcement for dog owners can lead to better-behaved dogs that contribute to a cleaner living environment.

Summary

Keeping a clean house with dogs might seem like a daunting task, but with the right strategies, it’s entirely achievable. From creating a dog-friendly entryway to maintaining a regular cleaning routine, from investing in air purification to efficiently cleaning up accidents, and from organizing your pet’s belongings to training your dog – every effort counts. So, embrace these tips, incorporate them into your daily routine, and enjoy a clean, fresh, and welcoming home that your family and your furry friends will love!