When you have a furry family member, messes happen. But their unconditional love, companionship, and super cute nature makes it all paws-itively worth it. Use our expert tips to tackle cleaning the worst pet messes in the smartest and safest way. Because owning a four-legged companion shouldn’t mean that your home always stinks.
An Unfortunate Accident on Carpet or Upholstery
For some reason, pets always seem to have their accidents on carpet or upholstery rather than on easy-to-clean tile! Whether it’s urine, vomit, or droppings, Vital Oxide has the cleaning power to eradicate foul-smelling odors and stubborn stains. To clean urine from carpets or upholstery, use a dry towel to initially blot up as much of the urine as possible, being careful to not rub it in. Then, rinse the area with a bit of hot water to dilute the remaining urine. Repeat the first step to blot up as much of the urine and water as possible. Finally, spray Vital Oxide on the area to eliminate odors and stains. Be sure to use enough of the formula to penetrate the carpet or upholstery fibers and all areas the urine may have penetrated and simply let air dry. A fan can be used to dry the carpet or upholstery faster if needed.
To clean excrement, pick up the droppings if they are solid. If the mess is wet, like diarrhea or vomit, try to get as much of it as you can, working as fast as possible, to avoid letting the stain set. A good method is to put on rubber gloves and use a dustpan to scrape up the majority of the mess, and then paper towels to remove the rest of it. Be careful to not force the mess into the carpet or upholstery as you’re cleaning! After you’ve picked up the mess, spray Vital Oxide and let it work its magic. Vital Oxide is proven to remove the strongest, most deep-set pet odors and stains.
Furry Floors & Hairy Furniture
Anyone with a hairy pet in the house knows the struggle of keeping things fur-free. Instead of going into panic mode when a friend (or worse, your mother-in-law!) asks if they can stop by, there are a couple of things that you can do to keep the fur-load down on the regular. First things first, start with the source: Brush your pet regularly (ideally once a day, or at least a few times a week) to reduce the amount of hair that’ll end up around your home. Next, keep the floors clean. Instead of sweeping your floors with a broom, which can just kick everything up in the air and make more of a mess, try cleaning your floors with a microfiber mop or vacuuming daily. For upholstered furniture that seems to have more hair than your pet, try vacuuming to remove as much of the hair as you can, and then put on a pair of rubber gloves, moisten them with water, then run your hands over the furniture and watch with satisfaction as you collect the fur with ease.
A Crusty Food Bowl
It’s easy to neglect a pet’s food bowl to the point of it becoming a gross, food-crusted mess. Rather than simply rinsing your pet’s bowl with water every once in a while, be sure to scrub it with unscented dish soap and warm water after every meal to eliminate bacteria and food build-up. Also remember to use a special scrub brush or dish sponge that you don’t ever use on human dishes. After cleaning Fido or Kitty’s bowl, wash your hands with warm, soapy water and disinfect your sink and scrub brush or sponge with Vital Oxide.
Muddy Paw Prints on Carpet
Picture this: It’s a dark and rainy night. Fido takes a quick pee break outside. Before you get a chance to wipe off his paws, he excitedly runs in the living room to get his favorite squeaky toy. There’s now a muddy trail of paw prints on the carpet. Woof! As hard as it may be, fight the urge to immediately wipe them up. Instead, let them air dry, then vacuum them up as best as you can. Next, blot whatever remains with wet paper towels. Finally, spray the carpet with Vital Oxide to banish germs and stains.
A Musty Pet Bed
If your beloved pet has a favorite bed, it’s likely that it gets a little funky from time to time. Instead of waiting for your mother-in-law to comment on the musty odor, wash your pet’s bed with fragrance-free detergent (and in a separate load from human items), since dogs and cats have sensitive noses. Be sure to also put it in the dryer. This will kill bacteria and parasites that may be lurking in the fabric. It’s also a good idea to regularly wash your pet’s stuffed animals in the washer, and rubber chew toys in the sink with warm water and soap to keep the germ load down.
A Smelly Crate
Whether you’ve just taken your cat or dog on a long trip, or the crate has been sitting in the garage for a while, it probably needs to be freshened up. Instead of spraying it with an artificial air freshener or cleaning it with bleach (which would irritate your four-legged companion’s sensitive nose and respiratory system), grab a damp cloth and wipe down the crate with warm water to remove dirt or dust. Then, spray the crate with Vital Oxide to clean, disinfect, and deodorize the crate. No need to rinse off the formula, simply let it air dry. Vital Oxide is perfectly safe to use around pets.
A Stinky Litter Box
If you have a cat, you know the difficulty of keeping the odor to a minimum. The struggle is real! No one likes the smell of a stinky litter box. Instead of scooping only when you see big clumps, try scooping litter twice daily, and replace the litter completely once a week. After emptying the litter box, scrub it with unscented dish soap and warm water. Rinse, and spray with Vital Oxide to kill germs and bacteria. Let the litter box dry before refilling with new litter. This routine will keep your kitty’s litter box smelling purr-fectly fresh.
