Pet Stains and Odors

Cleaning up after your pets can be dirty business. But guess what? Somebody's got to do it and that lucky somebody is YOU. Let's go with the most obvious pet household mark-the dreaded urine stain. When your pet urinates where he or she shouldn't it's best to act fast before it sets in. 

Here's what to do: 

1. Use a chamois cloth-the same thing you use to dry your car-to absorb the liquid. Chamois clothes hold 25 times their weight in liquid-more than enough to do the job (unless something really scary is going on with your pet)!
2. Do not rub or wipe the surface. Rather, blot at it.
3. Once you have absorbed the liquid, flush the area with clean water.
4. There are any number of excellent enzymatic cleaners on the market today that will de-stain and break odors. Apply one of these to the area and you should be good to go.
5. For blood, always use cold water to remove the stain. Hot water will only help the stain set.
6. If you get the stain cleaned up but there's a lingering odor, try white vinegar. (Note: ammonia, which seems like a good odor-eater, smells so much like the ammonium present in cat urine that cats might see it as an invitation to relieve themselves again in the same spot. Now you're back right where you started. So use white vinegar with cats only as a last resort.) 

Still no luck? You might want to try some old-fashioned remedies for stains. Some people swear by seltzer and I've heard tell of people rubbing raw potato on a stain (supposedly the potato absorbs the odor), or using peroxide and a little water on a sponge. 

Whatever you chose to use to combat stains and odors, it's best to do a test on a small area first. Trust me - you'll be happy you did this. 

Also in the precaution department, if you love pets and also love good furniture and feel the two can't live companionably in the same house, ask about having the furniture treated with a protective coating or spray before you bring it home. Or, use some of the sprays on the market (again-do a test area on the back of the furniture before applying all over). 

And while you're down there on all fours scrubbing and grumbling, remember this-we all make mistakes! 

Article by Dr. Jeff Werber, DVM