Pet Contamination & Your Carpet

According to the ASPCA, 44% of U.S. households have a dog and 35% have a cat. Many pet owners speak highly of the benefits they have experienced as a result of having a pet in the home such as improvements in mental, physical and emotional health.

However, along with these great benefits can come the occasional disappointments when Fido or Snowball has an accident on your wall-to-wall carpet.  Here are some simple tips to help ease your panic and keep your home clean and healthy:

• Treat the stain as soon as possible – The longer a pet stain sits, the more bacteria and odor will become an issue.
• Remove excess moisture – Blot up as much moisture as possible with clean paper towels. Then, a fresh set of 10-12 paper towels should be applied to the spot, weighed down (with a book or stable weight) and left to dry overnight.
• Treat with spotter – Prior to laying down the second fresh set of paper towels, apply a safe general spotter. We recommend a 50/50 mixture of Folex (found at most grocery or hardware stores) and rubbing alcohol to help disinfect and deodorize.
• Seal the subfloor – If your pet has had multiple accidents in the same spot, the stain can eventually penetrate the subfloor making it more difficult to remove the odor. In this case, the carpet must be pulled back and the subfloor should be sealed (such as with concrete) or replaced (such as with wood if it has begun to rot) and then sealed.
• Hire an IICRC certified professional – If you are unable to fully disinfect and remove the odor, or if you simply don’t want to hassle with the spot, contact our IICRC certified professionals. We have the equipment, cleaning solutions and experience needed to effectively remove pet stains.

If you have further questions about how to treat pet contamination, contact our friendly team at Preferred Carpet Care of Redding by calling 530-243-8400, or by using our on-line contact request form.