Budget-Friendly Cleaning Tips for Dog Lovers

 Budget-Friendly Cleaning Tips for Dog Lovers

Guest post by Kris Louis

Dogs are man’s best friend, but they can also be a cleaner’s worst enemy. Keeping a tidy home in a house with dogs can be a nightmare. Between fur, dirty paws, and a natural tendency toward chaos, dogs make for a serious housekeeping challenge. Cleaning up after them can also cost a pretty penny, especially if you wind up needing professional cleaning.

Fortunately, as a dog owner, there are plenty of ways to keep your house clean without breaking the bank. Here’s a look at a few budget-friendly ways you can keep your home looking great.

Use the Right Tools

No matter how perfect you are at preventing messes with your dog, they are invariably going to happen. Even the most well-behaved, well-groomed pet will at least shed. This means you need the right cleaning tools to clean up any messes they leave in their wake.

Consider picking up a stick vacuum. These are great options for dog owners because they’re far easier to maneuver than a traditional vacuum, best stick vacuum. This means you can get into all those little corners and spaces where your dog’s fur tumbleweeds manage to accumulate.
https://familyenthusiast.com/best-stick-vacuums/

Another great tool to keep on hand is a lint roller. These are handy for getting fur off any kind of fabric. Beyond tidying up your sweater before you head out, they can also clear up couches and chairs quickly. These are relatively inexpensive, but you may go through them quickly, so consider buying in bulk.

Groom Outdoors

If the weather allows it, try to brush and wash your dog outdoors whenever possible. This is one of the most effective ways you can limit shedding in your home. If you like, you can even collect the fallen hair and add it to your compost pile!

One quick caveat to grooming outdoors: Make sure you collect as much of the hair as possible, especially if you live in an apartment, condo, or other shared space. Your neighbors will probably not appreciate your dog’s hair coating the walkway.

Create Dog-Free Zones

Depending on the size of your home, it may make sense to designate some dog-free zones in the house. For example, you might decide that your dogs aren’t allowed in the kitchen. Since you prepare meals there, keeping dogs away from the food (and vice versa) makes good sense.

If you have a guest room, it’s a good policy to keep that space dog free. This way any visitors who have allergies will have a safe, allergen-free zone for sleep. If you keep your guest space open to the dogs, you’ll have to clean it thoroughly before anyone comes over. Simply keeping them out lightens your workload substantially.

Make a Dog-Wiping Entryway

Another great way to reduce dog messes on a budget is to create little dog cleaning stations at all your entryways. If you walk your dog in rainy weather, or even just on a damp day, they’re going to get mud on their paws. Then they come inside and track that mud all over your clean floors.

By simply putting a cloth rag and a spritz bottle at entryways, you can wipe your dog’s paws before they come into the house. Ideally, you’ll start this with your dogs as young as possible. If you’re introducing it to an older dog, however, you’ll still want to focus on building the habit and reinforcing it after every walk. Even if they don’t get messy, dab their paws with the rag. This will get them used to it when you need to do it.

Keeping your home clean with dogs is no small feat, but it can be an inexpensive one. By staying on top of fur management and doing as much as you can to avoid messes in the first place, you can keep your pup from wreaking havoc on your home.

Photo Credit: Pexels

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kristin@parentingwithkris.com

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