Cleaning Up Puppy Accidents

Welcoming a new puppy into your home is an exciting time! However, potty training doesn’t happen overnight so you will inevitably have to deal with cleaning up puppy accidents.

If you are looking for a way to quickly house train your puppy check out this article on crate training a German Shepherd puppy.

Even you adopt an older dog that’s supposedly already house trained, they’ll need time to get used to their new schedule as well as their new home.

While cleaning up puppy messes can get frustrating, don’t let that kick you out of your puppymoon phase too quickly. Familiarizing yourself with the proper way to quickly and effectively clean up puppy accidents will help lessen the frustration. Let’s get started!

Why learning how to clean up puppy accidents properly is important

It’s critical for you to learn how to clean up dog messes properly not only for proper hygiene and sanitation but also to minimize the risk of a never-ending cycle.

When dogs pee or poo, they leave a unique scent that they can smell, even when we think the mess is long gone. Since dogs prefer to do their business in the same spot, they’ll repeatedly eliminate where they can smell that scent.

This scent marking system is the same reason why it’s relatively easy to housetrain a dog. However, when they’ve marked somewhere they shouldn’t go — such as inside your home — you need to know precisely how to get rid of the accident in a way that makes it undetectable not just to you but to your dog as well.

Cleaning up dog poop in the house

Cleaning up dog poop on house flooring really depends on the type of floor that the poop is on. The process is different depending on whether the mess was made on carpet, wood, or tile.

No matter the material, however, the American Humane Society recommends to have a non-toxic enzymatic cleaner handy when you’re housetraining your puppy.

Non-toxic enzymatic cleaners use enzymes to break down dog messes at a biological level so that there’s no chance of them recognizing the scent again.

How to use them varies by product, so make sure you read the directions on the bottle of whichever one you choose. Nevertheless, here are some basic tips for you to clean up dog poop in your house.

Cleaning up dog poop on the carpet

Learning how to clean up dog poop on carpet seems like a nightmare, but it’s really not if you’re armed with the right products and a little bit of patience. Try the following steps:

• Scoop up the poop.
• If there are hardened spots, soak it in water to soften and then use some paper towels to absorb the liquid.
• When there are no more visible traces of the poop, spray on your cleaner generously.
• Leave it on for at least 15 minutes.
• If needed, use a carpet scrub to work the solution deep into the fibers.
• After enough time, vacuum over the treated area. Depending on the product you use, however, you may not need to vacuum at all. Make sure to read the label.

Cleaning up dog poop on wood floor

Knowing how to clean up dog poop on wooden floors can be tricky because wood is treated differently in each home. With hardwood floors, it’s highly recommended for you to apply a water-resistant polyurethane sealant to minimize damage not only from pet accidents but also from day-to-day activities.

Follow these simple steps:

• Scrape off the bulk of the poop.
• Wipe off any visible traces with a paper towel.
• Spray on a cleaner specially formulated for hardwood floors. Use as directed. Depending on the product, you might simply need to wipe it off or wash it off.

Cleaning up dog poop on a tile floor

Cleaning up dog poop on a tile floor is probably the easiest because the risk of staining and permanent damage is minimal. What you need to pay most attention to is the grout because, sometimes, it has crevices deep enough to keep remnants of the mess.

Here’s the easiest way to go about it:

• Remove the poop.
• Wipe off remaining traces with a paper towel.
• Use a brush and some soapy water to remove traces in crevices, especially along the grout.
• Wipe or mop off the soapy water.
• Spray on your enzymatic cleaner and use as directed.

Cleaning up urine stains in the house

Dog urine is tricky to clean because it tends to spread or seep through crevasses and materials. Additionally, it can stain things, if you don’t catch it early enough.

There are many DIY methods as well as commercially-available tried-and-tested products that can help you out.

How to remove dog urine stain from a tile floor

Cleaning up urine from tile flooring isn’t difficult if you catch it before it has set in and has actually stained the floor. Most enzymatic cleaners will be capable of treating urine stains.

There are also more common household ingredients you can use. For a DIY dog urine stain remover, follow these steps:

• Combine 1 cup of hydrogen peroxide, 1 tsp. baking soda, and 1 drop dishwashing liquid.
• Gently stir the mixture until the baking soda has thoroughly dissolved.
• Pour the mixture over the urine stain.
• Let the mixture sit for as long as you can.
• Use a washcloth or some paper towels to wipe off the remaining liquid.
• Repeat if the stain isn’t completely gone. At this point, the spot has already been disinfected, and your dog will no longer recognize their scent.

How to clean up dog urine on a wood floor

Cleaning up dog urine on a wood floor is a sensitive matter. Not only can the pee itself that can damage your flooring, but the products and methods you use can do so as well.

The most sensible thing to do is to buy a product that’s specifically made to clean up pet messes on wooden floors. Then, use the product as directed. Typically, that would involve the following steps:

• Mop up or wipe off the pee.
• Spray on wood-specific pet accident cleaner. Use as directed. Depending on the product, you may need to wipe it off or wash it off.

Additionally, you might want to keep a non-toxic wood polish handy for extra protection and to keep your wooden floors properly conditioned after a pet mess.

How to remove pet urine stains from carpet

For recent accidents, the American Kennel Club recommends that you do your best to blot up all the urine before starting any treatment. Then, you can try the following steps:

• Combine 1 cup of vinegar with 2 teaspoons of baking soda.
• Gently stir the mixture until the baking soda has thoroughly dissolved.
• Pour the mixture over the stain, making sure to use only enough to treat the desired area.
• Use a carpet brush to work the mixture deep into the carpet fibers gently.
• Let it sit for at least 15 minutes before blotting with towels.
• If the stain persists, try an enzymatic cleaner formulated explicitly for carpet accidents.

Final Thoughts

Cleaning up puppy accidents is a natural part of welcoming a new dog into your home. Although potty training will eventually help reduce the number of accidents, it will take some time and patience.

If you’re armed with the right stain removers and the proper knowledge to deal with the messes efficiently, you’ll find that it’s perfectly manageable. The fun, love, affection, and entertainment you get from your new pup will definitely make cleaning up the occasional puppy accident worth it.