How to Keep Pet Paws Clean to Keep Your Floors Clean
We have probably all heard by now that we should remove our shoes at the door to keep our floors and homes exponentially cleaner. There is a member(s) of our homes that gets overlooked as a culprit of violating this rule: our pets. Pets go in and out of our homes for a number of reasons when they go out they bring back all the yuck they stepped in back to our floors and we don’t really think about it.
Here are some ways to clean your pet’s paws before they bring the yuck to your floors. 
A Mat/Rug/Runner
These should already be in place on both sides of all exterior doors in your home for humans to make use of. If you have a doggie door just for your furry family member, don’t leave this door out. Place a quality mat on both sides of the door. Yes, Fido won’t be rubbing his paws along it to make sure the mud and dirt come off (unless you have time to teach him a cool new trick, it is possible) but it will help drastically to reduce the amount of gunk on your dog’s paws before they walk across your floors.
The most important part is to have a mat on the interior of the dog door and to make sure it is large enough for the dog to take a few steps across it as they come in the door. The first few steps the dog takes inside the door will deposit the most gunk. If you can catch this gunk with an absorbent rug it won’t get on the floor.
You put in a dog door so that you don’t have to take the time to stop what you are doing and let the dog out. A mat at the door allows you to continue to do that. We do suggest that you purchase a washable mat so you can clean it periodically as it becomes dirtier and dirtier with use.
Towel/ Paw Cleaning Mitt/ Wipes
To ensure you dog’s feet are thoroughly wiped down, the best way to do it is to quickly wipe each paw right as they enter your home. There are some tools you can buy to help you do this including pet paw wipes and paw cleaning mitts. Paw wipes are like baby wipes or hand sanitizer wipes, but made with special ingredients just for your dog’s paws. They will not dry out the pads of the paws or be harmful to your pet if they lick their paws. A paw cleaning mitt looks a lot like a car cleaning mitt. It is worn on your hand and has a furry “scrubber” side to catch and wipe away the gunk on your pet’s paws.
If you want a little cheaper option for wiping pet paws at the door you can also keep a few towels or rags just for this purpose right next to the door. OR you can just purchase a car washing mitt or two to keep near the door. Sometimes pet products are a little more expensive just because they are labeled as a pet product so finding an item that is essentially the same thing just labeled for a different use can save you money.
Tip: if you decide to use towels, rags, or any type of mitt keep at least two on hand. You will want to wash them often. Dirty paw wipers are of no help.
Booties
Booties are basically just shoes for dogs. One way to keep dirt from your dog’s paws off the floor is to keep the paws from ever contacting the dirt. This is a good alternative if you have a dog with pretty sensitive paws. This method does, however, take the most time, because it requires taking the time to put the booties on each time they go outside and then removing them before or right after they come in each time.
If you have mud stains from paw prints on your floors that you just can’t seem to get out or just need to get your floors sanitized and fresh again make an appointment online or over the phone with All Kleen. We provide carpet cleaning in Bothell and the surrounding areas.