Kitty litter is designed to soak up the smell of cat urine as well as the liquid, and usually our dogs urinate outside, or on potty pads. So when your cat or dog goes to the bathroom on your carpet, rather than in their designated area, the stench can soak into carpet fibers. Learn the best tips for removing cat and dog urine smells from your carpet.
Best Pet Urine Cleaners
A simple soap and water cleaning, or a vinegar cleaning, won’t suffice. The best cleaning products for cat urine include special enzymes that break down the smell of the urine and restore the rug to a neutral scent. This is essential, because if you don’t get the pee smell fully out of the carpet, your cat may continue to urinate in that area.
How to Clean Pet Urine from a Rug
If you happen to catch your cat or dog in the act, you know where the urine spot is. If you come home to a stinky apartment, you’ll need to feel the carpet for wet spots or use the sniff test to find urine-saturated areas of the rug. Cats tend to urinate in the corners of carpets, so start your search there.
For fresh pet urine, first blot up the urine with a light-colored cloth. A dark cloth could actually stain the carpet. Continue to blot the rug, changing cloths as often as you need, until you’ve removed as much of the liquid as you can.
Next, spray an enzymatic cleaner on the rug. Fully saturate the area and allow the product to soak in following the manufacturer’s instructions. You may need to blot a second time to remove cleaning residue.
For an area rug, pick up the rug and move it to a drying rack, where it can dry fully. Then clean the floor underneath, so any urine residue does not soak into the wood or vinyl flooring.
For an old stain, a baking soda and vinegar soak may help remove urine scent from carpet fiber. Spray the affected area with white vinegar, then liberally sprinkle baking soda on the carpet or rug and allow it to soak in for several hours, or up to overnight. In the morning, vacuum up the baking soda.
If you don’t have the time to clean a soiled rug, contact a professional rug and carpet cleaner, like Absolute Carpet & Tile, with experience cleaning up pet stains. An experienced carpet cleaner can remove the pet urine residue from the carpet, so your home no longer smells of it.
