How to Keep a Home Smelling Good When You're a Pet-Loving Household

I have a lot of animals. I rescue cats and kittens, dogs and puppies and I have two parrots, a 16 year old Scarlet Macaw named Aco and twenty year old Yellow Naped Amazon Parrot, Perri.  They talk and sometimes they criticize! They keep me very busy, cleaning, cleaning, cleaning! I wash my floors every day and I dust so often my nickname should be "Swiffer"! There isn't a day that someone doesn't have a smelly accident of some kind and so I strive to keep things clean and odor free, naturally.

Birds are especially sensitive to toxins in the air and the fumes of Teflon and household cleaners. That's why I use organic natural cleaners in my home. Lemon oil is all I use on my furniture and any brand is OK, but when you get to the heavy duty, and white vinegar isn't cutting it, here are my top choices for deep cleaning and stain removal. 

TKO is all natural and derived from the peel of the orange.  A friend of mine gave me some of this and it was love! I ordered some. It's anti-bacterial so it's great in the bathroom and for the litter boxes and cages. Containing d. Limonene, it is a champ at eliminating foul odors. and it smells fabulous. It is highly concentrated, an ounce makes a gallon, so it's economical as well as efficient.  A gallon costs around $90.00 and is worth it. This should last the average homeowner a year or more. It's my top pick, and gets a 10 on the Kleine Kleen Scale.

Wee Cleaner is another of my favorites. It's hydrogen peroxide based, natural, enzyme free and  it is a good choice to remove urine and fecal stains and odors.  It costs about $60.00 for a gallon and can be used as a general cleaner as well. I give it a 9.

SCOE, available on the internet, claims to eliminate even skunk odor and shows a couple of guys holding up a dead skunk and spraying it with this to prove the point.  I'm sure glad I can't smell that skunk!  I found SCOE to be OK, but not great, especially for the price. There was still a lingering "kitty pong" after I used it, even after several treatments. It also runs in the $60.00 a gallon range. I rate this a 6.

ZorbX is also all natural and non-toxic and it really works well. It's also a good value coming in at $50.00 for a gallon, although you are supposed to use it full strength. I have found it eliminates odors in the laundry, on the floors and litter boxes and a quick schpritz kills odors in the air. I use it to discourage feral cats from spraying around my front door and it really knocks out that awful cat urine stink. A spray in the litter box kills the smell when you can't scoop right away.You can find it at Lowe's in varying sizes. For it's all around use and good price, ZorbX gets a 9.

Nature's Miracle is the granddad of natural cleaners and it also works well at eliminating odors and stains if they are fresh. Old stains and smells need multiple treatments and since it contains enzymes, you can't use it with hot water. Hot water kills enzymes and nullifies their efficacy. For this reason, I give it a 7. A gallon runs anywhere from $30 to $50 depending on the particular formulation.

OxyClean powder is fantastic at both stain and odor removal and costs about $10 for a generous tub full. You can mix it with water to make a stain remover and let it sit for a few minutes and boom, stains are gone along with odors. It even works on Cherry Dr. Pepper on white carpets!  I put it in my carpet machine to do my rugs once a month and they look new when I'm finished.  I give this a 9.5 for convenience and cost as well as efficacy.

In my real life experience, I have to honestly say that once your cat or dog soils your carpet or wood floor, it is next to impossible to keep them from doing it over and over again no matter what you use. There are such strong pheromones in their urine, particularly cats, that even when we can't smell anything, THEY DO!  

Their noses are hundreds of times more sensitive than ours. So, as frustrating as it is, you just have to keep on cleaning the areas and use other deterrents such as Scat Mats or automatic sprays to keep them off. Keeping a clean home when you have multiple pets can be a challenge, but try some of my suggestions and I think you may find it a lot easier.

Dr. Kleine regrets she cannot give advice by phone or e-mail.  To make an appointment, call 631.472.8139 or e-mail us at Drfootsi@myway.com and ask about the Spring Special.