Pet-Friendly House Cleaning: Hair, Dander, Odors and Safe Products

A house with a dog or a cat gets dirty in its own way. There is the hair you can see, the dander you cannot, and an odor that always comes from somewhere specific. Each one needs a different fix, and most advice about pet-friendly cleaning mixes them together.

This guide from U Have It Maid takes them one at a time. It covers what works on hair, dander and odor, which cleaning products are safe around animals, and how a cleaning visit works in a home with pets.

Hair Is Not the Allergen

If someone at home sneezes around the dog, the hair on the sofa is not the cause. The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America explains that people with pet allergies react to proteins in the animal’s dander, saliva and urine, not to the hair. The hair carries dander, and it can also carry dust mites, mold and pollen in from the yard. In North Houston, that means a dog comes back inside in March wearing a coat of oak and pine pollen.

The same page makes two points that change how you should clean. Pet allergens settle on walls, fabric furniture, carpet and clothing, and they can stay at high levels for several months. Once settled, they are stirred back into the air by dusting and vacuuming. Dry dusting and a quick pass with an old vacuum can move the problem around without removing it.

A Weekly Routine for a Home With Pets

• Dust with a damp or microfiber cloth. The AAFA recommends this because it holds onto dander and fur instead of sending them back into the air.
• Vacuum carpet and fabric furniture every week. The AAFA recommends weekly vacuuming with a vacuum that has a HEPA filter. Go slowly along baseboards and under furniture, where hair drifts and collects.
• Wash what the pet sleeps on. Pet beds, throws and slipcovers go in hot water weekly.
• Keep one room pet-free. The AAFA suggests the bedroom, with the door closed, because you spend a third or more of your time there.
• Check the air filter. ENERGY STAR advises that you inspect, clean or change the filter once a month. A home with pets loads a filter quickly.
• Change the litter daily. The CDC’s guidance for cat owners is to change litter boxes daily and wash your hands afterward, even if you use a scoop.

Odor Always Has a Source

Sprays and candles cover a smell for an afternoon. To get rid of it, find where it starts. In most homes it is one of four places: the pet’s bed, the litter box, a spot on the carpet where an accident soaked in, or the sofa cushion a damp dog prefers.

• Fresh accidents: blot, do not rub, and treat the spot right away. Enzyme cleaners are made for this. The ASPCA notes that most of them can cause mild stomach upset in pets, so let the area dry before the animal is allowed back on it.
• Old accidents: if urine reached the carpet pad, cleaning the surface will not remove the smell. That is a job for a carpet cleaning company, and sometimes for a new pad.
• Fabric: wash anything with a removable cover. Vacuum what cannot be washed.

Which Cleaning Products Are Safe Around Pets

Fewer products are dangerous than most people assume. The ASPCA’s Animal Poison Control Center says that most cleaning products are safe to use around dogs and cats as long as they are used per labeled directions. How a product is used and stored matters more than which one it is.

• Let surfaces dry. Keep animals out of a room until a mopped floor or a treated spot has dried.
• Rinse what goes in a mouth. The ASPCA says diluted bleach is safe for cleaning pet toys and kennels if it is thoroughly rinsed and the bleach odor is gone before the pet is back around them.
• Lock up the laundry products. Detergent pods, dryer sheets and fabric softener are on the ASPCA’s list. Dryer sheets and softeners can cause chemical burns to a pet’s mouth and stomach.
• Never mix products. The CDC warns that mixing bleach with other cleaners or disinfectants can release vapors that are very dangerous to breathe. That applies to you as much as to the cat.
• Birds are different. The ASPCA advises asking a veterinarian before using cleaning products around birds, because they are extremely sensitive to fumes.

Our teams use family-friendly products, and green or fragrance-free options are available on request. Tell us about pets, allergies or sensitivities when you ask for a quote. For more on choosing products, see our guide to eco-friendly house cleaning.

How a Cleaning Visit Works When You Have Pets

We like pets, and we have a few rules that keep them and our cleaners safe.

• First visit: we ask that pets be secured in a crate or a closed room.
• Regular visits: if your pet might slip out the door while the team carries equipment in and out, or is wary of strangers, have a plan for where it will be. Tell us about it up front, and it goes in your notes.
• The same people: weekly and biweekly clients are scheduled with the same team each visit, so your pets see familiar faces.
• If you will not be home: let the office know during your quote that an animal will be in the house, and how the team should get in. Our teams do not carry client keys, so a door code, garage code or lockbox works best.
• Trash: it is bagged and left where animals cannot get into it, such as the trash can or the garage.

There is one firm limit. Our cleaners do not clean up pet waste. That covers litter boxes, bird cages, urine and vomit. Please take care of those before the visit.

On frequency: families with pets usually choose weekly cleaning, to stay ahead of hair and dander. We also suggest a deep cleaning about once a quarter for homes with pets, to reach the baseboards, door frames and blinds where hair settles between regular visits. Every recurring plan starts with one.

What Cleaning Cannot Fix

• A pet allergy. Regular cleaning lowers the amount of allergen in a home. It does not remove it, and it is not a treatment. An allergist is the right person to see.
• Urine in the carpet pad or subfloor. See above. The smell will return until the source is replaced.
• Damage. Scratched floors and chewed baseboards are repairs, not cleaning.
• Set-in stains. We clean fabric and other porous surfaces as thoroughly as we can, but an old stain may not come out completely.

When You Don’t Need a Cleaning Service

• One short-haired pet and mostly hard floors. A good vacuum twice a week and the routine above will keep up with it.
• The only problem is one spot on the carpet. Call a carpet cleaner. A maid service is the wrong tool.
• The problem is fleas. Pest control comes first. We ask that homes be free of pests before our teams come in.

Pet-Friendly House Cleaning in North Houston

U Have It Maid is a family-owned company that has been cleaning homes across North Houston since 2000. To set up a schedule that keeps up with your pets, request a free quote or call us at (713) 480-1571. See the areas we serve.