How to Keep Your Home Free of Dog Hair
Dogs are incredible creatures not only
because of their intelligence and readiness to play
but also because they are our best friends in the whole animal world and are
willing to risk their own life to save others.
However, such unconditional love comes at a
price, especially if you don’t have a yard and are living in an apartment.
While dog hair seems relatively harmless, it’s actually
quite a nuisance both because it’s hard to get rid of and because it can
sometimes be a serious health hazard,
especially for people who are allergic or have respiratory issues.
There are many methods and ways you can use
in order to keep your home free of dog
hair. Some of them cost a bit of money, while others require a bit of time and
effort. Therefore, anyone can work their way to eliminate dog hair from their
home, regardless of the size of their budget.
All you have to do is devote effort, time,
and most importantly – be consistent. In fact, consistency is essential for good results because getting rid of dog hair
isn’t a once-in-a-lifetime thing. If
you’re interested in finding new and innovative ways of dealing with this
burden, feel free to try some of the following tricks.
Using duct tape
This particular method is one of the most
popular ones amongst many pet owners as it is pretty straightforward and
simple. While it won’t help you when it comes to getting rid of hair that’s on
the floor or the kitchen tiles, it’s a great
method for eliminating fur from clothes as well as furniture.
The important thing you should be aware of
is the strength of the tape. In other words, you don’t want to buy a
super-adhesive type because it can damage your furniture or clothes. A more
practical way of doing this is with a link roller, but those don’t last long
and run out quite quickly. In case you find rollers more practical, make
your own in few simple steps.
You can also keep a roll of tape near the
entrance to prevent other people from bringing new hair in and vice-versa.
Dryer sheets
Most people don’t know about this little
trick that doesn’t require anything but a cheap box of dryer sheets. The sole purpose of dryer
sheets is to balance the electrons with ions and thus prevent static charge. In
simpler terms, these things are designed to keep your clothes from sticking and
attaching itself to other pieces. However, when it comes to fur elimination, a
slightly dampened dyer works wonders.
On top of that, these things have a double
purpose. Not only do they get rid of fur, but
they also clean the surface of other things such as stains, spots, and
etcetera. The best thing about this step is the fact that one can get a box of
dyers for as little as $10 and it will last for months.
Get a quality vacuum
A vacuum is probably the first tool most
people use to fight tedious fur all around the house. However, that doesn’t
mean it’s the most effective one. In fact, this method usually does more harm
than good, especially if you’re using an
obsolete vacuum. On the other hand, it can be incredibly effective as long as you own a high-quality vacuum that is specifically designed to battle
dog hair.
You will usually stumble upon two options –
you can try dealing with this nuisance by using
the vacuum you already own, or you can invest in a robot
vacuum for pet hair which is definitely
a better option even though it requires you to invest
a bit of money.
One of the things you should remember is to
pay special attention to the additional
attachments available for your vacuum. In other words, it’s strongly recommended that you use additional accessories that
are specifically designed to eliminate fur (dust brushes, carpet extensions).
A dampened mop for hardwood floors
While mops
usually do a good job of eliminating hair, they aren’t incredibly effective. A
dry mop will usually drag fur along the floor instead of picking it. However,
there is a small trick you can use to
increase the efficiency of your mop by a lot – include some water.
Now, the essential thing here to remember
is not to soak the whole mop in a bucket of water but dampen it. This way, it
will remain sufficiently dry to prevent damage to a wooden floor, but it will
have enough humidity to pick up any hair. Again, it’s a win-win situation
because you’ll deal with both fur and dirt.
Using a window squeegee
Even though it seems a bit ridiculous, a
tool for window cleaning can actually
help you when it comes to getting rid of excess fur. All you have to do is rub
the squeegee along the carpet, and after
only a couple of swipes, you’ll start
seeing balls of fur piling up on your
carpet.
It’s strongly
recommended that you do this before vacuuming the whole
room because most modern vacuums don’t have enough power to handle the tangled
hair hidden deep in the carpet. However, once you loosen those with a squeegee,
a decent vacuum should have no issues
further on. The advantage of this particular method is definitely the low price;
however, the disadvantage is that you have to invest quite a bit of labor and
effort to get the best results, and you
might damage the carpet by misusing your vacuum.
Rubber brooms
In case you have a vast tile floor, one of the best tools you can use is a rubber
broom. While it’s an item with a pretty specific purpose, it doesn’t come in
handy for other things. In simpler terms, some people decide against getting a
rubber broom because it’s mostly used for
the elimination of pet hair and nothing else.
Even though it is a tool with a specific
purpose, there is no reason why you shouldn’t get one. Some people are
concerned about the price, but most models nowadays cost less than $20. There
are some that cost way more, but quite frankly, they perform very similarly to
the cheaper ones.
Preventative measures
The best-possible method one can use to
decrease the amount of fur in their home is – prevention. Sadly, most people
take action when it’s already too late, but with proper preventative measures, you can avoid such scenarios.
The main thing you should do in order to reduce hair is - groom your pets,
especially during the molting season. The common misconception most people have
is that short-haired dogs don’t need grooming. It’s a completely wrong way of thinking, and
you should groom short-haired and long-haired dogs equally. Another thing you
can incorporate is – regular baths. While it doesn’t look like most pets lose
much hair during a bath, you can rest
assured that it helps a lot. In fact, the sole act of lathering and rinsing
removes an incredible amount of hair. The only downside to this is that hair
can cause clogging issues.
Lastly, you should pay attention to the
diet of your pet. Poor diet or peculiar eating
habits can cause excessive shedding. Either way, make sure you invest in
high-quality dog food or else you might encounter an issue with excess
shredding.
