Kristen wrote in and asked this, “…Any tips on keeping your house (mainly floors) clean with dogs? We just adopted our first dog at Christmas time and while we love him, it is also a little bit of an adjustment with cleaning. I know this is not your usual topic, but I see your two dogs and think, how do they keep it manageable?…”
Say no more, I thought as I became the Tom Hanks meme at the computer, a-la You’ve Got Mail. {She did, I just didn’t include it here.} But I feel this. Bringing a dog into your home is an adjustment for everyone. Today we thought we’d cover this little topic: Tips for keeping your floors clean with dogs. No, it’s not sponsored. Maybe no one cares. And I can assure you our home is far from perfect. In fact, it’s been absolute chaos for the past year. But I did think this is the ideal time of year to cover this topic. If you do have some pups, you may find some advice here you haven’t thought of before. I’d also LOVE to hear your suggestions below because I know there are things we haven’t thought of.
This post should actually be titled: Tips for Keeping Your Floors Clean with Two Giant and Ridiculously Energetic, Constantly Shedding Herding Dogs in the Winter. But I figured for posterity’s sake, we’d keep it shorter. Because anyone with large dogs knows that the wintertime, is the worst. I often joke that adopting these two was like taking on two toddlers. They take up that much room and energy and are just as messy. I would know… I already raised three actual toddlers, into teenagers. {High fives, we’ve made it this far.} In the winter, said mess only intensifies. They get so excited about going outdoors, lordt help us all if it rains. Unfortunately for us, Nashville is Seattle in rainy season, which also happens to be now. We adore them… don’t get us wrong. But we’re really glad we have an acre lot, because loving them can be a lot. I’m setting the stage for my realistic portrayal of dog parenthood. But as we all know, they’re also totally worth it.
Rigby and Fitz are white pyrenees / red heeler rescues, and they’re litter mates. So if we could also adopt a herd of sheep, that would probably keep them sufficiently busy. Everyone always asks us how they pose so well for photos, and the answer is that they’re working dogs, and honestly enjoy posing. They do well with a job to complete and a challenge in their day. All that to say, their energy makes keeping the floors clean a little of a challenge. This isn’t our first rodeo, and we’ve learned what works over the last twenty years of marriage with said doggos. {We had a sweet fur baby before these two, and Jamin says this is it, after these. He doesn’t know how wrong he is.}
The key, is a plan, and a small arsenal of tools.
Everything is an adjustment at first. Even vacuuming. I remember our first pup, Chloe, and how I couldn’t believe how much she was shedding. Turns out, it was nothing compared to these two. So, here are a few of our best tips for keeping your floors clean with dogs. {Or maybe just keeping your floors clean…}
1. Tips for keeping your floors clean with dogs: The Approach
Decide on your approach to everything, and adjust accordingly. I do feel the need to say this first: I am by far no dog expert, but I highly recommend crate training, and depending on your dog’s age, puppy kindergarten and then working one on one with a dog whisperer of some sort. I just felt the need to get that out of the way. Consult your vet for recommendations. I do not recommend sending your dog away to be worked with, but for you to do the work with your dog. You are the alpha. I will leave that there. {You probably already know this but just in case, it may help.} It’s all about adjusting your expectations the first few years, so that you can easily work with your dog. To be honest, because we went with two at the same time after losing our first pup to cancer, it was really hard. We had some issues that needed some major intervention, and we learned so much. I have found that it is usually the owners {see: me and our entire family} who needs to make some adjustments so that things are more manageable.
That being said, once you have a routine down, and some training under your belt, things get easier. For instance, these two know to sit patiently at the back door, to be let in. They also sit to be let out. {When we are good and reinforce it.} They know to stop and have their feet wiped coming back in. It’s a house rule. Too much mud gets packed in those paws, and if they are trained and I know how to manage them, that alone is a game changer. These pups crave boundaries and working for treats is a good thing.
2. Tips for keeping your floors clean with dogs: The Mud Buster
Speaking of mud, do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars. But if you live in an area where the yard is a challenge in the winter, grab one of these. In the summer, we can hose them down by the pool if needed, but in the colder months it’s just not practical. In a perfect world, we’d have a dog shower in a massive mud room, but we do not. Filling one of these up with warm water and wiping their feet with our dog towels {kept next to the door}, combined with their ability to sit and wait, probably keeps 80% of the potential mess out of our house. So I highly recommend a mud buster + collection of towels in rotation by the door to keep that mess from coming in.
3. Tips for keeping your floors clean with dogs: The Furminator.
If you have a shedder, get this. One of these pups is a heavy perpetual shedder. One is not. Of course, it’s also seasonal but I swear they’re shedding ALL. The. TIME. So a Furminator is everything. We use it {during crazy shedding sessions} 1-2 times a week. It prevents so much around the house that it’s a great helper. They really enjoy this as a bit of a treat because it must feel good when used properly. I also have to say I collected enough hair to create a separate dog the other day, so good times.
4. Tips for keeping your floors clean with dogs: The Robot Vacuum Cleaner
We vacuum with a “real” vacuum cleaner, once a week when we clean as a family. With two dogs like this, we easily blow through a cheap vacuum cleaner once every few years. It’s bad. Recently, we added this to our arsenal and it’s a SANITY saver.
We’ve named him Mikey because he eats everything. I can honestly say that my goal this year is to purchase more for various zones of the house. You can control their movement and schedule with the app. I’ve vacuumed manually all my life and this keeps it clean all week long, until we can do a deeper clean with the larger vacuum. The thing is though, this guy gets under all the furniture, where we can’t reach. Winning.
I’m not saying the dogs are crazy about it, but they do tolerate its presence.
5. Tips for keeping your floors clean with dogs: Make the Mopping Easy
Everyone has their opinions about mops and what to use. This one keeps it simple and quick. I can go for some paw prints at the back door when I feel like taking it on. But I highly recommend doing what works for you and what makes the most sense with time. We work from home, so it doesn’t make sense to have a professional cleaning crew right now. I’ve gone back and forth about it for years, and it’s six / half dozen another. We have three kids who do their chores, This keeps it simple and manageable.
6. Tips for keeping your floors clean with dogs: Consider your Floors
This one is super extra, but bear with me. But it has to be said. Consider your floors, and what you might work better with in the future. Are you in your forever house? If not, when you move, what do you want to work with? What kind of floors do you have now? What isn’t working? If you’re in this home for a long haul, consider lower maintenance floors with a lower sheen, if any at all.
The photo above doesn’t even do the finish on these, justice. I was not prepared for the high shine. But after a leak in our kitchen, and tying it into the new addition, we changed our floors this summer and there is NO GOING BACK I HAVE NO IDEA HOW I MADE IT FOR SO LONG. Once upon a time our floors were dark and super glossy. I felt like I had to clean them daily. You could see EVERYTHING. They were nice, but with our three kids and two dogs, they were also an actual nightmare. These? Not so much.
Not only is there a low sheen, but if you’re not paying attention, you might not see Rigby – the top doggo. I’m kidding, but do you see how easily their hair blends? No, I did not choose my floors based on their hair color. I wanted simple and natural floors in a beautiful white oak, and the reason for replacing them with details is in the link. I did however, choose the finish very purposefully. The floor guy even argued with me but I was convicted after living with super glossy for so long. If you have the option for choosing in the future, consider the finish of your floors, and choosing something with a variation so that you can’t see things so easily.
Maybe the seemingly silliest thing I’ve ever written here, but we are smitten six months later and my own stress has lowered from level red to an easy green. Dogs always damage the floors, unless they’re something like ceramic tile throughout. We went back and forth about this for a long time. Damages are actually really hard to find, and I can always refinish a few {decades} years down the road if I change my mind. I’m not scrambling to clean the floors before someone comes over. Lots of reasons. We’re thrilled six months later.
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It’s just something to consider to keep your peace of mind in the future. These rescue pups have our hearts… they’re a lot of work but they’re definitely worth it. I guess this is where it actually does tie in to all things home. We truly hope this helps.
What are your best tips for keeping the floors clean in your home? I’d love to hear your suggestions!
Have an inspired day!
Awww, what beautiful dogs, but definitely a whole lot of fur between the two of them! I really enjoyed this post and all the good ideas. We have a whippet, so we don’t notice any shedding from her, but we also have six cats, so there’s definitely some fur flying around at our house! I agree 100% about the lighter colored floors being a life saver. We have them now, but had dark, shiny floors at our old house, never again! Just our of curiosity, have you had any problems based on the fact that your dogs are litter mates? I’ve read that two dogs from the same litter will tend to bond with each other and not bond as well with their humans. I just wondered if that’s true based on your experience? Also, have you ever tried an electric steam mop? I’m thinking of getting one…
Hey Jeanine! Thanks so much for stopping by! Yes, those lighter floors with less shine are HUGE for not noticing things. It took us this long to circle around to it, but our home feels totally different. I don’t feel like I have to scramble to get the house clean before someone stops by. ;}
Also, great question: I read up on litter mates before adopting these two. We took them both, because we were told they were super bonded. They have had no problem bonding with us, as we were careful in the beginning to socialize and separate for stints of time. However, they do have a lot of anxiety, and because they are two females we did have issues with fighting in the beginning. This was really scary with kids. We hired a dog whisperer, and learned so much on how to work with them since they struggle, wanting to be the alpha. It changed everything, so we’re glad we did that.
Regarding a steam mop: We have a shark and it’s great! But I am still new to my white oak floors, so I only use it on the tile for now. The Swiffer is just quick and easy for that weekly cleaning I need. I hope that helps!
I have a German Shepherd (big time shedder) and laminate floors (except in the bedrooms) Our house is one story and about 2000 sq ft., so not large. I keep the fur under control with a quick dust mopping at least every other day. I do need a wet mop for the paw prints at the door he uses, especially with the rainy weather we’ve been having in Los Angeles, but I can let that go. No prefectionism here! My dust mop is my friend!!
So smart! And yes, I do think you have to let go of any idea of perfectionism when you have dogs! They’ve definitely taught me to loosen up over the years. 😀 Stay safe with that weather.