If you have a pet, especially a hairy dog, and area rugs or full-room carpeting in your home, you likely understand this complaint from an owner we know of a housebound Corgi.
“I have two area rugs in two different rooms, neither larger than 100 square feet,” she explained. “I vacuum those rugs two or three times a week and the amount of dog hair is incredible each time. How can such a little dog have so much hair?”
Even shorthaired dogs who show little evidence of shedding are leaving a lot of stuff behind that you certainly don’t want lurking in carpeting or on floors. Dogs, whether long- or short-haired, are not the only depositors of hair in our homes. People shed hair too— or at least those of us who still have it— and it all adds up. We’re picking on dogs, especially the Corgis in our lives, because they are clearly the hirsute champions in many of our homes. We love our dogs, and sometimes we just have to live with the hair in the rug and keep the vacuum cleaner nearby.
If you’ve got a hairy dog, your cleaning concerns involve more than carpets. You will probably find dog hair in corners of your smooth floors, blown there by interior drafts, people activity and other conveyors. Microfiber dust mops can round up all the doggie hair surrounding smooth floor surfaces. If you occasionally allow your dog on the couch, you’ll need regular vacuuming there, too.
Regular pet grooming to remove some of that hair helps combat the dog hair assault, but it comes far from solving it. One recommendation dog owners often get when dealing with amassing hair are carpets and furniture in a color close to the color of their dog’s fur. That might be a smart home design choice, but the hair is still there, and it might make you forget its presence until a guest in dark slacks or skirt departs trying to brush off a layer of dog hair.
The hair is what you see, but pet dander, which is not so easy to detect, is the chief health hazard and is part of dust that floats through the air in your home, something that you can breathe in, resulting in allergic reactions. Often microscopic pet dander is part of the diet of house mites, which also contributes to the unhealthy environment.
Professional cleaning services have the products and equipment, often eco-friendly, that not only get rid of dog hair with regular cleaning but the invaders you don’t see. You can have shedding hairy dogs and still maintain a healthy environment for you, your family and your guests.