If you have more than one dog...how do you keep your house clean?

[cinnamonmon]

I have three little ones, by default, I love them all but would never have chosen to have three. I have a tiny house and I feel like it is always dirty because of them. They have ruined the carpet which I hope to be able to afford to replace in a couple of months with hardwood. Though none of them shed much, there is still always dog hair around. Their food stinks and their beds takes up too much of my kitchen. I have two grown sons and when they marry and have kids, I doubt they would want to bring their kids to my house because of this. I try my best to keep it clean. I vacumn and mop everyday. I did make the mistake of letting the dogs on the furniture and beds which I am very sorry about. I doubt though that I could stop that now. I grew up fairly poor and never felt like my mom was a great housekeeper, and I have tried to be different, but my love for dogs has now gotten in the way. If you have more than one...how do you make sure your house is clean?
Laura

[TootiesMom]

it is difficult!
I just always make sure the pups are clean and that helps, I think they think I am crazy cuz I bath and wash their feet so much...
I use LOTS of lysol and also air cleaners. I sometimes feel that I can never keep it clean enough but I know it is clean under the puppy stuff... LOL
good Luck!
d

[grayxie]

Febreeze helps, but I too am in that situation. The fault lies more on my sister though, when she visits with Zippy. Zippy poops, pees, and pukes all over the house, its to the point that if she is visiting I take up the rug, and beds in the TV room. Currently the main stinky is the living room carpet, especially since its humid right now. All the deep rooted animal smells are surfacing I'm trying to schedule a carpet cleaning so I can have at least a few weeks of clean carpet before Zippy visits again. You do what you can to keep tidy, no body is perfect. You just want to ensure a healthy living space for you and your pets.

[scoobiedooiscoo]

when we moved into this house it smelled like cat pee we ripped up the carpets bleached the floors and when we replaced the carpeting we got padding that has rubber on both sides so the pee never soaks in and if the dogs do pee on it now i use natures miracle on it right away. i also steam clean it once a month. i dont really find that much dog hair for some reason. my main problem is the dogs take out more toys then the kids i babysit for lol. but thats ok i am more anal about clean rather then neat, toys are no biggie.

[littlewhip]

I hear ya, its a never ending job, with 4 iam always cleaning, they are all potty trained now but have totally ruined my carpets in the process, I just had my carpets cleaned and i use harmor hammer for pets in the air, Im thinking of putting tile in all my rooms except bedrooms, I scub there there kennels out every other day, and bath them all once a week, that helps but its a job. I wouldnt have it anyother way though

[Ichabob]

I wish I knew the answer to that question. I even went to the extreme to by a dyson vacuum, I try to vacuum every other day as well as mop, but they still track in grass and stuff even with that.

I bath the dogs once a week, and try to keep them off the furniture, but hubbie lets them get on, so thats a lost cause, I just do the best I can and try not to worry about it.

[lizziepooh_1]

I don't have much advice for carpets...but for anyone who has a rug, I think I can help. Tia peed on and chewed up 3 little area rugs we went through at our front door. With our latest one, as soon as we put it down I invited my husband to lie down with me on it to pretend to nap, to play with Tia on it, and just relax (I know we must've looked nuts). She hasn't peed on it or chewed it since. i think we intilled in her that the rug is a place where mommy and daddy sleep and her too, so she won't do anything there that she would do in our bed.

Definetly look into hardwood....although ceramic tile can be a comparable (and sometimes less expensive) option that is easier to maintain, with less damage to worry about. Then there is a steam mop made by a company called Thane (they have an infomercial) that works like a CHARM!! Gets rid of the smell too!

[FlDebra]

This is a common concern of mine too -- we have 4 and they definately make a mess. We live in the country and all four of mine thoroughly love the outdoors. I shake my head every time I sweep the kitchen at the amount of grass/dirt/debris they track in. Toys are always here and there. Even as I pick them up to vacuum, my little Ben is busy dragging them back out as fast as he can.

Mine are a constant part of our family life and we have just accepted that it is like having perpetual toddlers. Thank goodness for Febreeze and my Bissell carpet cleaner! They do make for extra work, but they are worth every minute of it!

[Skippy's Mom]

our Skip has had so many accidents on our carpet- eventhough we get it cleaned, thay still resurface. Right at this time- guys are working in my house to put down laminate in my family room, one guy just walked by me and said"the good old internet"....so they are as you can see- here right now. I was just talking with my husband in tyhe bedroom with my coffee in my hand when skippy jumped up to me...my husband said-well, now we need to get that cleaned too! AND I'm getting a new baby in December!!!

[7TimesBlessed]

.....I think everyone's comments are great advice....you just have to do the best you can and then don't stress about it.....I love hearing ......"we have accepted that...." and "my husband said..."....this means that the family is in it together....if you can raise the pups as members of the family and have the rest of the family's support I think that is HUGE because you don't need the added stress of a family member not understanding .....

[Betty'sMom]

I have two and it isn't too bad. They are not allowed upstairs (all carpeted) and are 'supervised' in the bedroom (also carpeted)...they are not dirty when they go in there, so they will only scatter toys and play chase, which is no big deal. They love to sleep in the office, so I had very nice vinyl flooring installed. They have the kitchen, the greatroom, the office and entryways to run in. There's plenty of room and there is no carpeting. Also, when it is wet outside, I put the doggy towel on the floor when they come in. They know they are going to get their feet wiped somewhat. I walk them in the yard...they do not have free run in and out...so that prevents a lot of tracking dirt in and out. I worry too much about hawks, snakes, fire ants, etc. I just reread this...I guess I'm anal!! LOL

[fourdez]

I have three, and its really not that bad for me. I give the floor a good mopping once a week but every night after I do the dishes I run a damp mop to pick up whatever has trailed in and once a week I wash all the area rugs and their bedding. I have decorative throw blankets (which I painstakingly shopped for so it looks like part of the sofa) that I wash once a week. I give them a bath every week and comb their hair every day therefore, I don't have much hair around the house. Oh.. and it helps that I don't have carpeting... Actually, thats the biggest help of all...

[Mom2BabyNatalie]

As a mother of five 2-legged children, I learned pretty early on how to best keep things in order - - AND how to delegate chores!! So when the furfaces started coming along, it wasn't all that difficult since I'd already resolved to hard wood or stone tiled floors in the majority of the house (but the house is very small as well, so it's still tough with clutter issues sometimes) - as well as mostly leather furniture in the living room and stain resistant carpets in the bedrooms.
I still have two kids at home and now have SIX furfaces in the house.... from the tiniest of my 1.5 lb Yorkie baby to the big ol' 75 lb Border Collie mix - (and stair step sizes in between) - - - so chaos is a constant here... but with diligent feet, face and bottom washes - it's not intolerable to be here at home with them.
The biggest issue is the younger dogs who still have the "chew anything and everything" phase going on.... so keeping things out of reach is the hardest part, I think.
My Yorkie baby never touches the ground unless we're outside to potty.... her precious little feet never touch the floor.... so it's pretty simple to keep her and her area clean.... she's in my bed, in my arms or in her playpen or bassinet .... potties on the wee pads when it's too cold to go outside and that makes for easy clean up.
The rest of the dogs are all housetrained and go in and out all day.... (a doggie door helps!) - - - so aside from a quick clean up each night with the broom to keep the hair off the floors - a good mopping once a week - and the couple of baby gates that we've all learned to maneuver around - it's just your basic dishes, laundry and other yucky daily stuff to worry about!!

[soccbydo]

you dont lol. I have ma place clean but untidy if you know what I mean, stuff all over with him playing, can imagine what it will look like with two

[HallTx1203]

I think alot of it is getting yourself in a routine. I have 2 little boys and also take care of my 11 month grand baby. We only keep one bed in the kitchen big enough for them both. I have to mop the kitchen everyday. The baby is learning to feed herself and she has learned that she can "drop" stuff for the boys. lol. Sometimes they eat it, sometimes not. We use potty pads. They boys do not go outside. I have to vaccuum every day also for the same reasoning. As for toys, they are everywhere. I do a pick up 3 times a day...lol...We also have baby gates on both sides of the kitchen to keep baby out of cabinets and to let the boys have time away from baby..lol.

We do have accidents- both the boys and the baby.. So we have the carpets cleaned every other month.

Food, we feed Canidae and they get fed twice a day. I pick up their bowls after they finish each meal. Water bowl is the only thing left down. So no food smells...

I do wash their bedding every morning. And for smell- No one has ever said anything bad. I have Wallflowers(airfreshners from BBW-best thing ever made IMO) They are fantastic. Can't smell dogs or baby..lol....

The boys also get bathe every Sunday afternoon.