Looking for a way to get rid of a cat urine or dog urine mess? Here's how to clean pet urine...
This article will tell you how to clean pet urine. We tell you how to find and contain the urine problem, but also how to clean cat urine and dog urine with household products as well as commercial products.
Lovable and smart as our pets are, they can’t always be relied on to clean their own urine and waste. And sometimes, they make mistakes or they have problems because they are sick (e.g., Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease). So it’s up to you to ensure that your home remains clean, safe and above all else, free from the strong odor of pet waste and urine.
Make a Careful Examination First
Before rolling up your sleeves and taking out your best cleaning tools and household chemicals, you should always make a careful examination of the affected areas. A general examination will enable you to determine the best cleaning strategy to use. The first step is to closely assess the damage. It might be really bad or not bad at all.
Some people will only target one obvious area. Instead, try to do it all at once. Locate all the affected areas. Search every room. You're already on the prowl for cat urine or dog poop, so maximize your time.
How to Clean Pet Urine from Furniture and Upholstery
First, after your assessment, definitely act as quickly as possible. Do not let cat urine dry or it will stink and it will be harder to clean. If you want to know how to clean pet urine, that is the first lesson: Act now!
If only the furniture cover has been contaminated, remove it if possible before setting out to clean it. Definitely take the cover off before cleaning or the urine will just sink in. This might seem obvious, but I've seen people rub and press urine right into the furniture because it soaks through covers.
Gently remove stains with a soft cloth or a paper towel. Light dabbing work best. Grab and soak up all the urine and poop you can before taking any aggressive steps. Be gentle and deliberate.
Avoid applying any cleaning solutions or solvents directly to the affected areas if possible because this may cause discoloration or other undesirable effects on the upholstery. When finished cleaning, dry the cover immediately.
How to Clean Pet Urine from Hardwood Floors
Your beautiful hardwood floor might still be saved from permanent damage if you act fast enough. After scooping up pet waste and dabbing it with a cloth or towel, apply vinegar directly to the affected area. Make sure you don’t miss a spot. Afterwards, use your preferred brand of pet cleaning product and use according to the directions found at the back label of the product. If the stains prove to be stubborn, you can try sanding and resealing.
How to Clean Pet Urine from Carpets
Carpet stains usually the most difficult to get rid of because carpets are easily damaged and pet urine and pet waste can permeate through the carpet, reach the backing and even the floor.
If possible, remove the carpet from the floor before cleaning. If there’s padding underneath, remove this as well. Remove the stain with your favorite pet cleaning product but make sure that you do not directly apply it to the carpet. Rather, pour or spray it on a cloth, brush or whatever applicator you have. Replace the old padding with a new one before reinstalling the carpet. Dry it completely.
Experiment with Enzyme Neutralizers
Knowing how to clean pet urine through homemade vinegar and baking soda solutions is great but sometimes not enough. You might need to experiment with enzyme neutralizers. Enzyme based products introduce large amount of "good bacteria" which overwhelm "bad bacteria" in the mess. I strongly recommend Odor Destroyer.
Bleaching Solutions
You can also make use of a bleaching solution to remove pet urine stains. Make sure however that the bleaching solution is not the type to damage or change the color of the area it’s being applied to, unless yor're willing to use wood stain and polyurethane.
After dabbing and cleaning all you can without chemicals, apply a small amount of bleaching solution to a cloth, then rub gently. If that isn't working, cover the whole area with paper towels and let the solution do its work overnight. Doing this is pretty aggressive, but you’ll find that the stains and the smell are vanquished!
How to Clean Pet Urine with Plain Old Baking Soda
I mentioned baking soda above. Let's talk about that some more. When you are learning how to clean pet urine, it might be exactly what you need to know.
Baking soda has hundreds of uses, and one of them is removing pet urine stains and smells. After absorbing pet urine with paper towels, scrub the affected area with baking soda. Once the area has dried, it should be vacuumed immediately. This technique works best with dog and cat urine messes that you just discovered.
Other Pet Waste Cleaning Tips
1. With puppies and kittens, get in the habit of doing a spot check for urine and poop everyday. Act quickly and systematically.
2. It’s important to get rid of any residual stains because once your pet sniffs the unique scent of his urine, he will know that it’s his territory, and therefore a “good” place to keep urinating and pooping.
3. There are several tools that might come in handy when doing a spot check on your house. An ultraviolet (UV) light will enable you to see hardly visible and long-forgotten pet urine stains. A moisture detector will also help you identify other contaminated areas. Lastly, an odor barrier will keep unpleasant smells away.
4. If contamination of your carpet is extreme, consider hiring a professional cleaner to do the job for you. This way, the original beauty of your carpet will be retained. Sometimes, this is your only path forward.
Wrap Up
We've done a lot of reading and research to learn how to clean pet urine. For example, we've written specially about cat urine cleaner. We've also posted an amazing interview with Philip Doolittle of OdorDestroyer.com, which products we highly recommend.
