For any pet owner, urine and pet stains are a fact of life. And getting rid of them promptly is important for maintaining a clean and safe environment for you, your family and your pets.
It’s important to get rid of pet urine stains because:
● Urine can ruin carpets, bedding, and floors.
● Pet urine has bacteria in it that can make you and your family sick.
● Your home will constantly have an unpleasant odor.
● Uncleaned pet urine can trigger allergies and respiratory problems.
● If you’re renting, you won’t get your security deposit back, and may even be charged extra for professional cleaning in the whole apartment.
Remember that when you have pets at home, not all generic stain removers can be used, as some of them are toxic to dogs. Do your research to see if there’s anything about the cleaner that you’re about to use that may cause any health problems for your pets in case they smell or lick the area.
Ideally, you want to always have a pet-safe cleaning product on hand to clean up a urine or vomit stain right away, before the stains soak into the carpet or flooring. For busy pet owners, that may not always be possible. Here are some quick tips on effective ways to clean both new and old pet stains from any kind of flooring or upholstery.
Ways to Remove New Pet Stains
Even if you manage to time it just right so that you are present when your pet stains the place, you must do more than just wipe up the urine or vomit in order to really clean the area. There are diverse Types of flooring you may have to deal with, and your stain cleaning strategy will vary. It’s always easier to clean any stains on a hardwood or ceramic floor than when the stain is on a sofa, bed, or on your clothes.
The first step is to wipe up any urine or vomit with a paper towel or sponge. Soap and water is not enough to effectively clean up urine or vomit, however. You have to use a specially designed cleaner that is formulated to break down bodily fluids; otherwise, you only clean the surface but leave the bacteria to spread. Make sure that it’s a cleaner designed for pet stain carpet cleaner and is pet-friendly.
You may have to experiment with several cleaners to find one that you think works the best. Skip the grocery store based pet stain carpet cleaner because often they are not formulated well enough to get deep into the stain, and will only make the impression of the stain being gone.
After you spray the cleaner on the stain, let it sit for five to ten minutes to work on breaking down the stain. Then rinse according to the directions. You may have to complete this process twice in order to fully get rid of the stain.
For all new stains, also remember to check your pet and his paws in case he’s tracking more urine or vomit along with him. Either give your pet a quick bath or simply use a paw wash to ensure your pet’s paws are clean and that he won’t be spreading bacteria everywhere.
How to get rid of old stains
If you don’t come across the stain immediately, it will have time to really sink into the floor, bedding, clothing or whatever else is stained. It’s very common for pet owners to not even realize there is a urine or vomit stain until the stain has already set. You might just notice odor in the air and not even really know where it’s coming from.
In order to clean the stain, you have to first find the stain. This is why every pet owner should have a small black light or UV light. Urine and other biological material will glow under a black light so this is the best way to find old pet stains. You can buy a small black light at almost any pet store or online.
Stains on Upholstery, Clothing or Bedding
If you find urine stains on your pet’s bedding, or on your bed or clothing, or on an upholstered surface like a couch or chair, you’ll have to work a little harder to get those out. The first thing that you need to do is immediately treat the area with a pet-safe cleaner. Spot test the material first to make sure that the cleaner won’t cause spots or damage to the fabric. Then soak the area where the stain is with the cleaner.
Use a small brush, like an old toothbrush, to really work the cleaner into the stain area. Get the cleaner as deep into the fabric as possible. Wait for 5-10 minutes so that the cleaner can break down the older stain and then rinse according to directions. You may need to do this several times if the stain is really set into the fabric.
If the stain is on clothing or your pet’s bedding that can be washed, treat the items with the cleaner first. Really soak them with cleaner then wait for a few minutes. After that, put the clothing or bedding in the washing machine with your usual laundry soap. You may want to pour in a capful of the same cleaner too. Then wash the material in hot water. Don’t wash the stained clothing or bedding with any other clothes or items.
After the wash cycle is done, do a smell test on the bedding or clothing, and if necessary repeat the process, washing them again in hot water with a little extra pet stain carpet cleaner. Then dry as usual. That should get rid of the stain.
Remove old Carpet pet odor and stains
If you’re trying to remove an old pet urine stain from carpet, it’s helpful to have a rug cleaner that uses hot water to scrub the carpet. But if you don’t have one you can still scrub the stain by hand. First use a spray bottle of the pet-safe cleaner and really soak the area of the stain. Make sure that the cleaner gets all the way down into the carpet padding. If the urine has leaked down into the carpet padding, you’ll have to get it all out as well, which will be harder but necessary to avoid smells.
When you’re sure that the cleaner has gotten all the way down to the carpet padding, let it sit for up to 30 minutes so that the enzymes can break down the urine. Rinse the area with hot water and let it dry.
If you have a steam mop, you can also run it over the area using a carpet glider attachment. The hot steam will kill any bacteria that the cleaner didn’t break down. A steam mop is a very useful item for all pet owners to have because it disinfects without chemicals.
Hard Floors
If you have hard floors in your home, cleaning up pet urine stains or vomit stains is fairly easy. After you’ve located the stain, douse the area with the pet-friendly cleaner and just wipe it up after 10 minutes or so. That should take care of the stain. And again, if you have a steam mop, using it to steam the area is a great way to make sure that any bacteria is neutralized.
