Whether you own a dog, a cat, or a pot bellied pig… if you let them roam free in your home be ready to deal with pet smells of all varieties. It’s a fact of life sometimes a pet is going to have an accident. On a couch or on the floor… it happens at all stages of life. When it does, chances are it will smell bad. And if it’s not a mess from either end, it might be general odor like the smell from a wet dog, or a pet’s ear infection, or from the dreaded romp in a pile of dead bird. That is exactly why we built the guide to help find the best pet odor eliminator, for a variety of uses.
Whichever smell you’re trying to eradicate, you’ll likely head to Google. You’ll probably search for the “best odor eliminator” for (insert source of smell). We think we’ve covered most of the smells, but if you see something we’ve missed let us know.
When your pet has an “accident” (poop, pee, puke)
Try Biokleen
If you’ve ever been in charge of a litter of puppies, or even just a couple, you know the value of a good all purpose cleaner. The problem is that so many that you’ll find on the local grocery store a packed full of harmful chemicals and VOC’s. If you think we’re making that up check your favorite cleaning products on the EWG (Environmental Working Group) website (here’s a report on a product we’ve used in the past). We know that you want to keep your pets and loved ones happy, so why would you use a harmful chemical to kill those stains and smells. We now opt for more natural products like those from Biokleen. In fact, here’s their EWG report for the sake of comparison.
Make your own carpet cleaner
If you would like to make your own cleaning product for carpet stain and odor removal try mixing 1 part cornmeal with, 2 parts baking soda and Borax, then add in about 15 drops of essential oil(s). Apply, let it sit for a while, then when it’s dry vacuum it up.
The key to any pet stain, especially urine is to act fast. Clean it up while it’s still wet. Wait too long and it’s exponentially more difficult to remove.
When your floor or furniture smells like your pet…
Try an OdorKlenz Product
Use this odor fighting product to clean up in a wide variety of situations. You can use it in a spray bottle or even in a carpet cleaner. It gets rid of stains and odor. It even works on hardwood floors.
We like it for its versatility and it’s miniscule environmental impact. If you use it on carpet or furniture be sure you use an extractor to pull the product from fabric.
If you find a dried stain…
Try Bissel’s Spot Clean
When a mystery stain dries and you happen across it, you’ll need more than just a cleaning product and some paper towels. We like Bissel’s Spot Clean because it is small, yet effective at cleaning up small messes. Use it in conjunction with one of the products we mentioned above and with luck you’ll pull up the stain along with the smell. The bad news is that if the odor makes it into carpet pad, the stain is probably there for good. If it makes it all the way down to the sub floor you’ll probably be fighting some smell for a long, long time.
If you smell something, but can’t figure out the source…
Use a Black Light
Before you go out and order anything from Amazon so you can investigate every square inch of your living room like a crime scene investigator… use your nose as much as possible. More often than not you will be able to track down the general area where the smell resides. However, if you try and try to narrow down that pet odor without success, try using a black light. But, be warned, there’s probably a lot of stains and such that you aren’t prepared to see. When you locate the stain use a bit of baking soda to mark the soiled area so you can see it when you’re finished with the black light investigation.
If you need a little more odor fighting power
Use Angry Orange
The name says use this product with caution. But, in reality it’s fine to use on fragile surfaces like hardwood and carpet. Angry Orange is a commercial grade odor eliminator derived from orange peels. It’s non-toxic and since it was developed to battle livestock odors it will probably help clear out the smell of cat urine. Plus it smells like citrus! If you’re skeptical check the reviews on Amazon, there are a lot of people who say that it worked wonders on heavy ammonia smelling cat pee odor.
Your litter box still stinks
Add Some NonScents
In our pet odor overview we mentioned litter boxes and covered why it’s crucial to keep them clean. Unfortunately that ammonia smell can be so bad that you need more than a good cleaning. NonScents is probably the best product on the market when you need to go the extra mile when cleaning that litter box. The fragrance-free product neutralizes odor from cat pee and poo. It works great as a daily additive and compliments an air purifier well. It’s chemical free and won’t turn your cat off next time they make a trip to the litter box.
Take a trip to the Vet…
If your pet continues to have accidents, or a bath isn’t fixing the odor consider a trip to your veterinarian. Strong smells or incontinence could point to health problems that need professional medical attention.