When you're choosing a pet, you never consider
mark that your new dog or cat is going to make on your home ... literally. Even if you manage to housebreak your pet with complete success, you'll find evidence of your furry friend throughout house -- from hair on your bedspread to snags in your sofa to slight stench that's been hanging in dining room ever since Fido shook himself dry after a romp in rain.If your furniture is dark and your pet has white, orange or another light-color fur, you've got your work cut out for you. There's nothing worse than approaching a sofa covered in hair, which then transfers to your own clothing. To pick up what your pets leave behind, dampen a cloth (don't saturate it), and run it over surface of your sofa, bedspread or chair cushion. This is easiest way to pick up majority of that fur and restore your furniture to top condition. You can also use a piece of masking tape. To avoid using multiple strips and experiencing frustration of having tape tangle up, try wrapping a piece around your hand, sticky side out. Of course, you can always use a brush or tool on your vacuum cleaner to remove pet hair from your furniture, but that takes more time and often isn't as effective.
Pet stains are a tricky area. Due to combination of a high protein diet and their hormones, male cats are considered worst offenders, followed by female cats and then dogs (dogs tend to have diets higher in carbohydrates, which means less offensive odors). If your dog or cat had an accident on a washable surface -- a cushion with a removable slipcover, an item of clothing, a pillowcase or bedspread, for example -- you may continue to smell what your pet left behind even after you've run item through cycle of your washing machine. Try adding some white vinegar in your next cycle along with your laundry detergent. The vinegar should cut any residual odors.
If your pet had an accident on carpet, you're facing a challenge. Generally speaking, if you find accident and clean affected area immediately, you can restore your carpet to its previous condition. If you do notice spot soon after crime has been committed, blot stain using a white paper towel (colored paper towels might bleed into your carpet, making spot even more noticeable). After you've blotted area as much as you can (you may even consider placing something heavy on top of paper towel to help speed up absorption process), rise area using a household cleaning solution containing ammonia. Blot area again with another white paper towel, and then rise again using a solution of diluted white vinegar. Blot area again. Then, tear off a few fresh paper towels, and place them over spot with something heavy on top (a stack of books, a wine bottle, etc.). Leave them there for several hours to ensure that spot is dried thoroughly.
If your pet is clever and chooses a low-traffic spot that you don't find until several hours later or even next day, you might experience faded carpet (your pet's mess actually bleaches carpet) or a stubborn odor. Depending on dye used in your carpet, you might see a fading or other type of color change in your carpet. This is particularly true if spot has time to sit, and your pet's "accident" has had considerable time to seep through to bottom lining of your carpet. If stain sits for several days or even weeks, not only will dye discoloration become permanent; fibers of your carpet will begin to weaken and deteriorate. The area around spot -- and even room itself on a hot summer afternoon -- will take on a strong, acidic odor, reminiscent of ammonia. The bad news is that there's not much you can do about that smell. Adding to problem is that presence of urine in fibers of your carpet attracts bacteria in carpet and its padding. Unfortunately, attempting to wet area with various household cleaners will probably intensify, not diminish, odor.
