Pet Problems: How to Clean Your Carpet

Pets are a treasure to have around the home. Their excitable nature brings and affection, and their protective instincts often mean you don’t really need a doorbell! But there’s one downside that we all fear: accidents. Whether your dog is old and losing control, or young and throwing a tantrum, even the most well-trained pets have been known to make the occasional mistake.

So what do you do? While using a professional cleaner is always a great choice, there are times when you can solve the problem yourself. If the accident is solid, just use a paper towel and water and the problem will be solved. But if it’s wet, then things begin to get a little hairy. First, grab a dry rag and try to soak up as much moisture as you can. If you catch it immediately, you’ll likely be able to keep it from going down deep. If you have a big dog, you may need a few rags to get the area dry.

Next, confront the stain. If you have a small dog or a cat, this is probably going to become a bigger problem because their urine is more acidic and likely to leech the color out of your carpet, leaving a permanent stain. Make sure you find a cleaner that uses all-natural ingredients, like our Zerorez Spot Remover. Put just a few drops on the area and dab at it with a wet or moist cloth until the stain disappears. Do not oversaturate the area. Remember: the more you put down, the more you’ll have to remove, or else you’ll end up with a spot that gets dirtier faster.

Now even if the area looks clean, you’ll still want to disinfect and deodorize the area. Look for something that uses the word “enzymes,” as those are specifically designed to kill off that odor-creating bacteria and break down any urine still in the carpet. Here’s where it’s okay to use some of those stronger chemicals. But make sure you get rid of the stains first! While those stronger enzyme cleaners are great at eliminating odors, they have a tendency to only mask the stain while actually pulling dye out of the carpet, thus resulting in permanent staining.

So here’s the three steps to remember: dry (with a rag), stain removal (with natural ingredients), odor elimination (with enzymes). If you remember these, and keep them in that order, then you’ll have a good edge in dealing with those difficult bathroom issues. Stay tuned next time and we’ll go a little bit deeper. Stay clean, Indy.

-Zerorez-