Keeping Your Dogs Bed Clean Between Washes
Washing a dogs bed without a removable cover is not something we want to be doing every week. Although, it is recommended to wash your dog’s bedding weekly.
There are a few simple ways you can keep your dog’s bed clean between washes and in turn, keep your house odour and bacteria-free.
Pre Treatment – Remove Loose Dirt and Odors
Before you start cleaning the bed with any water or wet treatments, it is essential to remove any loose dirt and hair.
Vacuuming will help reduce any mess once the bed becomes wet.
If the bed is particularly smelly, you may want to sprinkle with baking soda and allow to sit for an hour before vacuuming.
Give the bed a good shake outside and run a vacuum over it with the upholstery nozzle paying attention to nooks and creases.
You may also like to use a lint roller or dog hair removal brush to tackle any hair stuck in the bed.
We recommend vacuuming (and even steaming regularly) between washes to keep the bed fresher longer.
If your dog’s bed has stains such as food, mud or worse, you may need to spot treat stains before washing. It will be much harder to do once the bed is wet and regular washing may not remove stubborn stains.
Avoid regular stain removers with harsh chemicals and artificial fragrances such as bleach or chlorine products such as household bleach.
Look for stain removers made especially for pet stains as they will be more efficient at neutralizing odours and less harmful to your hound.
We like Skout’s Honor Professional Strength Stain & Odor Remover – It’s one of the best performing natural enzymatic product on the market. It Eliminates stains, bacteria and odours at a molecular level, it’s all-natural and cruelty-free. They also donate a portion of each purchase to feeding dogs at local shelters which makes everyone feel good.
It also works for human accidents such as removing grease and wine stains.
Apply the stain remover and allow to stand for 10 minutes.
Dab the area with a wet cloth until the product has been rinsed and remove excess moisture – Do not scrub the stain.
Depending on how dirty the bed is, you may wish to presoak.
Use warm – hot water if pre-soaking to ensure you kill any bugs or bacteria. The hotter the better but check the label first for any recommendations.
If the bed is small you may do this in your washing machine.
Large beds can be soaked in a bathtub or, in a large machine at a local laundromat.
If your dog’s bed is small, place the entire bed into the washing machine. Following the manufacturer’s instructions, wash in hot water to kill bacteria.
Add a mild, chemical-free washing detergent. Ideally use a soap detergent designed for pets to avoid any skin irritations or allergies later on.
You can also add a 1/4 cup of apple cider or white vinegar. Either will act as a very effective deodoriser.
If washing large bed by hand, make sure you completely submerge it in warm to hot water and allow enough time in the detergent to effectively remove dirt and germs. At least 15-30 minutes.
If washing the dog bed in a machine, you will want to rinse the bed twice. Once to ensure all the dirty water is washed away and again to remove all the soap residue.
You may also want to spin the bed twice to get rid of as much excess water as possible.
If you are handwashing your dog’s bed, squeeze all the water from the foam filling and submerge the bed again in clean water to rinse.
You may need to do this a few times to make sure all the soap and dirt run free. A handheld shower can help speed this process if using a bathtub.
Squeeze as much water from the bed as possible. If the bed fits and after checking the manufacturers washing recommendations place the bed in the tumble dryer. If it is a sunny day, leaving the bed in the sun to dry will be just as efficient.
Place the bed on a drying rack or similar to allow water to drain away and air to circulate. If it fits, a final spin in the tumble dryer will help to fluff and stuffing or foam filling.
If you are hand washing it may be difficult to manually remove enough excess water. Leave the bed in the sun for a while before using a tumble drier.
Whatever method you use for drying your dog’s bed, it is essential to make sure it is completely dry before use again.
If the foam is still damp, the bed could become smelly or worse, mould could grow inside. It is also not ideal for your dog’s health for them to sleep on a damp surface.
How to Clean a Handwash-Only Bed
Begin by vacuuming the bed to get rid of dirt, hair, and debris. Place the bed in a sink or bathtub (if those aren’t big enough, try an outdoor children’s pool). Fill the container with warm water, laundry detergent, and a cup of vinegar. Squeeze and knead the bed in the water repeatedly. Empty the tub and rinse the bed until soap is gone. Lay the bed flat and allow it to air dry.
If you suspect there’s an infestation in the bed, it’s time to toss it.
Hacks to Cleaning a Dog Bed
Sometimes, dog beds focus on form and comfort over human-friendliness. What we mean by that is they focus on your dog’s comfort (as they should), but don’t make it easy for you to clean it when it gets a little too stinky. You can’t always just stick it into the washer due to the size, nor can you always put it in your kitchen sink. So, how can you wash it without ruining the dog bed or ruining your patience?
Even if it doesn’t stink and even if your dog is pretty clean, you still need to wash their bed regularly. No matter how little your dog sheds, or how little dirt they bring into the home, both will still make their way into the fabric of the bed and cause odors. Your dog will also likely drool on their bed and (if your dog is anything like some of our employees), will be “crop dusting” their bed frequently too.
All of this means your dog’s bed is the perfect place for germs, bacteria, loose fur, and other unsightly things.
The following chemicals found in many cleaning products can be harmful to your dog. There are lots of effective cleaning products on the market that are free from harmful chemicals.
Before you add any water into the mix, you’ll want to give the bed a good vacuuming to remove any loose fur, fleas, or dirt. Shaking it out may work, but a good vacuum will get even the most ingrained pieces of fur.
If the bed is particularly smelly, you may want to sprinkle it with baking soda and allow it to sit for an hour before vacuuming. Baking soda is a natural odor-neutralizer and won’t harm your dog.
Pay extra attention to creases and nooks near the bed’s stitching. These are the hardest places to clean and often carry the most fur!
Next, if your dog’s bed has any stains, you’ll want to remove those to the best of your abilities. It will be much harder to do once the bed is wet and regular washing may not remove stubborn stains.
We recommend using pet-friendly stain removers that don’t have any artificial fragrances. Do not use bleach or chlorine products! For most stains, you can’t go wrong with Resolve. If you want to use products in your home, you can try mild dish soap and warm water as well.
Depending on how dirty the bed is, you may want to presoak it too. Use hot water! The hotter the water is, the more efficient it will be at killing any bacteria. If your bed is small enough, you can always just toss it into the washing machine as well, though make sure you check the tag first! Not all dog beds are washing machine safe.
Large beds can be soaked in a bathtub or, in a large machine at a local laundromat. You can also spot-treat any problem areas with a hot “pre-soak” instead.
If your dog’s bed is small, you can place the entire bed into the washing machine. Use hot water! Add a mild, chemical-free washing detergent.
If washing the dog bed in a machine, you will want to rinse the bed twice. Once to ensure all the dirty water is washed away and again to remove all the soap residue.
You may also want to use the spin cycle on the bed twice to get rid of as much excess water as possible.Those suckers get heavy when wet and may cause slow drying if they’re excessively wet!
If your dog bed can’t go in the wash or is too large to fit, here’s what you do. Fill up your bathtub or sink with hot water and submerge it. You may have to do this in sections if the bed is too large for your sink. Add deterrent and scrub before you let it soak for at least 15 minutes.
If you are handwashing your dog’s bed, squeeze all the water from the foam filling and submerge the bed again in clean water to rinse. You may have to do this a couple of times to make sure it’s completely soap free.
If you have a shower, this can help speed up the process! A showerhead makes a perfect rinsing tool for large dog beds.
If the bed fits andis dryer-safe, place the bed in the tumble dryer. If it fits, a final spin in the tumble dryer will help to fluff and stuffing or foam filling.
If it’s not dryer safe, then placing it out in the sun on a drying rack or something similar to allow the water to drain will work just fine.