It’s easy to romanticize about the joys of owning a pet. Truly, pets are great companions, always excited to see you, ready for an adventure, and unselfconsciously affectionate. But there’s a less agreeable side to the reality of lodging your favorite critters. They can become really smelly!

Fortunately, this does not have to mean you should forgo sharing your home with a furry friend. If you are proactive about preventing smells and quick about removing them, you and your pet can enjoy each other’s company with no mixed feelings.

Pure Environmental explains how to clear your house of animal odors, including tips about the best materials and products to use to most effectively maintain a healthy, clean, and pleasant atmosphere in your home.

 

Table of Contents

 

Does Pet Odor Ever Go Away?

This depends on the odor’s source. Dander and fur can be vacuumed and cleaned away to help eliminate the smell, but removing urine is a process that must be done correctly (likely professionally) to completely go away. If not done right, the smell can linger for up to 30 years.

 

how to get rid of bad pet odor in house

 

How To Get Rid of Pet Odor in Your House: Getting to the Root of the Problem

Pet odor can be caused by a few different things, but mostly dander and urine. Before you can begin the cleaning process, you have to know what it is that you’re trying to clean. 

Pure Environmental identifies the cause of the odor in your home and applies the appropriate process to target it effectively. Call us today to discover the many ways we serve our clients.

 

how to get rid of pet odor in house

 

6 Tips for Removing Pet Odor From Your House

Odors caused by dander, fur, natural body oils, and saliva can be removed by attending to the following processes.

 

#1: Vacuum Surfaces

Vacuum the floor and any other areas where pet dander and fur might settle, such as the couch cushions, your pet’s favorite lounging areas, behind furniture, in crevices between furnishings, etc. 

Also do not dust all horizontal surfaces –- tables, windowsills, dressers, countertops, etc. — that are exposed to your pet’s shedding fur and skin. This will cause the detritus to become airborne and potentially re-deposit on previously cleaned surfaces.

A high-quality vacuum with a washable filter is essential for removing fur and dander from carpets. You may even want to invest in a wet-dry vacuum for deeper cleaning.

 

#2: Wash and Dry Linens

It’s important to regularly wash linens your pet comes in contact with (for instance, your bedding, a blanket on the couch, couch pillows, etc.) But even so, the linens they don’t technically “use” still attract dander and fur through the circulation of air in your home.

Machine-washable items can be laundered according to the manufacturer’s instructions, but other items, such as leather furniture, might require a more specialized approach. 

If your couch cushions are especially smelly, you can perform a “dry wash.” Sprinkle them with baking soda and leave it overnight before vacuuming it up. Baking soda is a powerful natural odor neutralizer. Otherwise, you can use a pet deodorizing spray, but it’s better if you try to find an enzymatic deodorizer instead. It will eliminate, rather than just mask, the smells.

 

#3: Clean Pet Bowls, Bed, Toys, and Accessories

Regularly clean all pet items and accessories — food bowls, litter boxes, collars, leashes, pet beds, toys. Some of these items are easy to forget to clean, but anything that your pet comes in contact with can hold onto odors and serve as a nice home for bacteria. 

If you neglect to keep these items clean, pet odors will soon saturate your home. Make this part of your daily or weekly routine so that you don’t have to wonder where the pervasive dog or cat smell is coming from.

 

#4: Bathe and Groom Pets Regularly

Keeping your pet clean will help minimize the dirty fur and dander. Commit yourself to regularly grooming your pet. This includes wiping their paws when they come inside, brushing their coats weekly and their teeth every other day, and ensuring they are given a professional grooming at least once a month. 

Dogs that get their teeth brushed stay healthier longer, and it cuts down on bacteria that produce unpleasant smells. The earlier you start brushing your dog’s teeth, the better they will tolerate it. Use a soft-bristled toothbrush and toothpaste made especially for dogs, which doesn’t need to be expectorated.

Purina recommends that short-haired dogs get a bath once every 1-3 months, but long-haired dogs require more frequent bathing because more dirt can get trapped in their fur, which also tends to get matted.

 

how to get rid of pet urine odor in house

 

#5: Use Neutralizers When Cleaning

When cleaning your home, use neutralizers to help eliminate odors. Baking soda and vinegar are great choices. You can:

  • Sprinkle baking soda on rugs and couches before vacuuming. Rub it into the fabric with a cleaning brush, and shield the area from sunlight, as this can bleach the fabric.
  • Dilute vinegar with water and spray it on surfaces before cleaning. Vinegar can also be used along with laundry detergent to wash linens used by pets.
  • Test out the tactic of putting cat litter or a bowl of vinegar near suspiciously smelly items. It should absorb the bad odors from clothes, shoes, etc.

You can also use citrus (a natural enzymatic cleaner) and hydrogen peroxide (an odor neutralizer) or Nature’s Miracle Stain & Odor products.

 

#6: Invest in a HEPA Filter

This mechanical air-purifying filter forces air through a fine mesh filter to trap harmful particles (like dander). The HEPA filter has three layers that remove 99.97% of odor-causing molecules, allergens, viruses and other disease-causing organisms, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

The three filtration layers are:

  1. Prefilters: These collect debris.
  2. HEPA filter: These are capable of removing very small particulate matter.
  3. Carbon filter: These remove pollutants and odors.

You can have a HEPA filter installed in your HVAC system to purify the air in your whole home, or you can invest in a portable filtration system that stands inside your house.

 

How To Get Rid of Pet Urine Odor in Your House

To properly eliminate urine odor, you must eliminate the urinated salts from the environment. To do this, Pure Environmental uses a specialized process to remove affected material and heat to dilate pores in other materials.

Pure Environmental also uses PurAyr™ odor removal technology, which involves an advanced oxidation process that eradicates organic contaminants in the air, on surfaces, and embedded in household items. This chemical-free method of neutralizing odors is safe and effective at removing some of the most pervasive odors, including urine, smoke, and mold.

 

Day-to-Day Pet Accident Cleaning

Doing a full urine elimination process is not something you’ll do every time your pet has an accident inside your home. Still, cleaning accidents properly is critical, both for eliminating the odor and for minimizing the attraction of your pet to the same spot to repeat the offense. 

For these accidents, you’ll want to use a product with an enzymatic formula to help break down the proteins in pet urine and permanently remove the odor. Enzymes are attracted to any carbon-based (organic) material — such as urine, feces, and body oils — and speed up the reaction that breaks them down naturally. This type of cleaner is less likely to discolor or otherwise damage the surfaces to which it is applied.

How you should clean pet accidents depends on the age of the stain and the type of floor surface:

  • New urine stains on carpet or fabric:
    1. Blot the area with a thick layer of paper towels and newspaper. Stand on these to more quickly absorb the liquid.
    2. Discard these materials, then rinse the area with cool water and blot it dry with a towel or a wet vacuum.
    3. Spray the enzymatic cleaner over the affected spot. 
    4. If you do not have an enzymatic cleaner on hand, sprinkle a thin, even baking soda over the spot. Let it sit overnight before vacuuming it. Or, mix a cup of white vinegar with a cup of water and 2 teaspoons of baking soda. Spray it on the stain, and blot it thoroughly.
  • Dried urine stains on carpet or fabric:
    1. Rinse the area with warm water, and blot dry. Repeat this several times.
    2. Spray your enzymatic cleanser and blot dry.
  • New urine stains on wood:
    1. Follow step 1 for urine stains on carpet.
    2. Apply a hardwood urine stain remover to ensure no marks are left on the wood.
  • Old urine stains on wood:
    1. Try using the vinegar solution described in step 4 above, but you may want to err on the side of caution by using a more diluted solution (½ c vinegar in 1 gal water) to avoid damaging your floor.
    2. Sprinkle baking soda on the floor while it is damp and let it sit overnight before vacuuming. Then apply an enzymatic cleaner that is safe for wood before cleaning the area with your normal floor cleaner.

 

how to get rid of pet odor in your house

 

Pure Environmental: Treating Unwanted Pet Odor in Your Home With Environmentally-Friendly, Non-Toxic, 100% Green Technology

For thorough and professional pet odor removal, contact Pure Environmental to learn about all the services we offer. These include:

  • Odor removal
  • Heat treatments for pest extermination
  • Emergency mitigation
  • Attic and crawl space cleanup
  • Repair and restoration after fire or water damage

Pure Environmental will ensure that you receive the highest quality of service from licensed, insured technicians. Our team is dedicated to using non-toxic and environmentally friendly products and methods to protect your health and that of your family while effectively removing contaminants of all kinds. 

As more customers seek out our top-notch services, we remain dedicated to making timely responses to quickly solve your problems before they get worse. The sooner you take action to cleanse soiled areas in your house, the better the end result will be and the less detrimental it will be to your health.

After we provide you with our PurAyr treatment, your home will not only be free of pet odor, but also of pollutants, microorganisms, and other irritating substances. If you live in the Portland or Seattle areas, call us today to learn how we can make your home a safer, more inviting place to live.

 

how to get rid of pet odor in house