Before you wash your dog blankets, you'll want to remove excess dog hair if using a regular washing machine. There are a few methods that help to remove pet hair, including using a lint roller, rubbing the fabric with dryer sheets or throwing the blanket in the dryer before sending it through a wash cycle.
Before you throw your laundry in the washing machine, run your clothes through a 10-minute dryer cycle on tumble, with no heat. This softens the fabrics and loosens the pet hair, which will be caught by the dryer's lint trap. Then shake the clothes to get as many pet hairs out as possible, and toss them in the washer.
The fabrics that attract a lot of hair, on the other hand, include wool, loose-weave cotton, velvet and synthetics. Some will always attract more than others, and the washing machine represents the only real solution to removing pet hair from clothes.
Vinegar is one of the best tools to have around the house for cleaning almost anything, including pesky pet hair. Vinegar helps to soften fabrics, which will help free clinging dog hairs from the threads of your clothes. During the rinse cycle of your wash, add about ½ cup of white vinegar to the machine.
Another way to address pet hair in the laundry is to use a laundry booster, such as white vinegar, that loosens fur. “Adding some white vinegar to the rinse cycle of the washer machine softens the water and helps to loosen fur from fabrics,” Bendersky says.
Washing your pet bed in the washer is much easier than hand washing. If it's time to purchase a new bed for your furbaby, choosing one that is machine washable will save you a lot of time and hassle. Veterinarians recommend washing your dog's blankets and outer bed cover weekly to help eliminate dirt and odors.
Laundry detergent: Pets are sensitive to smells, so opt for Tide Ultra Stain Release Free, which is fragrance-free without compromising on cleaning power.
Run blanket through a 10-minute dryer cycle and shake it out. Add half a cup of white vinegar to the rinse cycle to soften fabric and loosen hair. Wash the blanket on a regular wash cycle by itself or with only a few other items so hair can drain easily.
You should also wash the dog bed in the washing machine. If the dog bed is too large, you can take it to the laundromat to be washed. Load the dog bed cover or the entire bed into a front-load washing machine and wash it in hot water to kill any insects and eggs that may be on the bed.
A lint roller or lint brush – use as you would on clothing. A roll of thick tape – wind packing tape or duct tape around your hand, sticky side out, and press on the fabric to pull out stubborn hairs. A rubber shower squeegee – lightly spray the fabric with water first, then run it over the surfaces.
Simply running the laundry through a tumble cycle will loosen the fabrics and pet hair, no heat needed. When the dryer is done, take out the laundry, give it one last shake to remove any remaining pet hair and put it in the washer.
If your vacuum isn't doing a good job of getting all the hair that's embedded in the fibers of your carpet or upholstery, liquid fabric softener can help. Add a spoonful to a spray bottle, then fill with water and shake to mix. Spritz on your carpet and let sit for five minutes.
Use masking tape.
Masking tape picks up hair where pet hair is embedded into the fabric. You could also use sturdy packing tape wrapped into a circle around your fingers with the sticky side out. It works just like a lint roller, but it's not eco-friendly, so it's best only used for emergencies.
While a rubber broom will help you remove the pet hair from your wood, tile, or linoleum floors, a window squeegee will take care of your carpets. It's super simple: Just rub the squeegee through your carpet. After a few swipes, you'll have loosened up the cat hairs embedded in your carpet.
The wash needs an additional rinse cycle to remove an abnormal amount of hair. You're using too much detergent, which is causing all of the hair and lint to redeposit back onto the clothes. Cut down on the size of the load you placed in the washing machine.
According to BeChewy, medium and long coat dogs should bathe every four to six weeks, and owners of dogs with short coats should bathe their pets somewhere between every month and every three months. Dog owners should be warned not to wash their pup's coats too much, though.