Hair, there, and everywhere! Welcome to owning a puppy!
From the tips of their boopable little noses to the end of their wagging tails, we love our puppies with all our hearts. However, that doesn’t mean we don’t get frustrated sometimes with certain aspects of puppy ownership. While your puppy may make you laugh, the amount of dog hair they can shed is no hair-larious matter.
Most dog owners will tell you the battle to contain and clean up dog hair and dog fur is one of the top challenges of owning a puppy. Sometimes you’ll swear you can make another furry companion out of the dog hair you find – in fact, some people even have a little felt sculpture made of your dog’s actual fur resembling an exact likeness of your dog!
Before you go find a needle felting fiber artist, we’ve gathered a collection of helpful hacks to remove pet hair on your quest to deal with dog fur in your home, car, office, and beyond. It can be very frustrating when you spend a lot of time cleaning up dog hair. It can also be extremely satisfying when you’ve done an excellent job…until you turn around and see a fresh tumbleweed.
While dog hair everywhere may seem like part of the ownership of certain breeds of dogs, you can still take action to reduce the amount of pet hair you deal with every day. Find out tips and techniques for managing dog hair in your home to keep dog fur to a minimum.
Hair Today, But NOT Gone Tomorrow
When you’re looking at puppies for sale, you will probably be thinking of the cost of the puppy and basic start-up items. However, don’t forget to budget for those costs that begin after you bring home your puppy.
One of the line items that some dog owners may skip over when financially preparing for a puppy is the cost of dealing with dog hair. That’s right – we guarantee you’ll be spending some sort of money on an item that helps address dog hair or fur, even if you have a low-to-no-shedding dog.
But my crossbred or purebred dog breed isn’t supposed to shed!
Unless you have a truly rare hairless dog, such as an American Hairless Terrier or a Xoloitzcuintli, all dogs with either hair or fur will shed due to natural hair growth. It just depends on where that hair lands as far as pet hair management goes.
If you have a doodle mix (a dog with Poodle genetics mixed in), you might have assumed they do not shed at all. This is technically not true. If you’re wondering, “Why does my dog shed?” you may be interested to know that some purebred dog breeds and all doodle mixes have hair instead of fur, which continuously grows and needs special attention to maintain a healthy coat. Doodle mixes and dogs with hair will still shed, but the dead hairs do not fall off the dog and are instead contained in the curly coat. That’s why it’s important to brush your dogs with hair instead of fur to help removed trapped shed hair.
Depending on the generation of your crossbred puppy, each puppy is genetically different and may still shed a bit outside their coats, as the coats may take after the purebred side rather than the Poodle side. The further the generational crossbreed is from the original purebred dog, the less likely you will be dealing with stray hairs around your home.
Single coat vs. double-coated dogs
If you’ve heard of a single or double coat but aren’t quite sure what the difference is, we’ve got you covered – much like you probably are right now in dog hair!
A single-coated dog only has one layer serving as both the protective and insulating layer for the dog. Single-coated breeds typically have fur that is consistent in length and texture across their body. They don't experience the same seasonal shedding cycles as double-coated breeds because they lack the dense undercoat.
A double-coated dog, however, has two layers of fur: A weatherproof, rough outer coat with longer guard hairs and a soft, downy, lofty undercoat that serves as body-regulating insulation in both hot and cold weather. During spring and fall in particular, double-coated dogs will do something called “blowing their coats” which results in heavier fur loss to prepare for the upcoming seasonal changes.
One might assume a single-coated dog doesn’t shed as much as a double-coated dog. While this can be true, it’s not always the case. In fact, Pug puppies shed just as much as Golden Retrievers on the AKC’s dog breed information pages.
Tips and Tricks for Managing Dog Fur and Pet Hair
If you’re exasperated finding dog hair on your clothes – and even in the food you cook – we’ve got some useful tips for how to control dog hair in your home. Some of these may be more appealing or feasible than others, so try out a few to see what works best for your spaces.
Health matters
The very first thing you want to consider is to see if your puppy is healthy. Some common puppy illnesses may cause your dog to shed, or there may be fear and stress in your puppy that is making the shedding more prevalent. You can contact your licensed veterinarian to see if your puppy should be seen if you are concerned about shedding due to their health.
Stay on top of cleaning the hair and brushing your pet
If you want to truly make a difference in managing pet hair, you have to stay on your efforts regularly. It only takes a few days, especially during coat-blowing season, to have the situation escalate to you calling your pet “Hairy Houdini” instead of its name (unless you have actually nicknamed your dog that because he escapes his crate).
Feed high-quality puppy food
Consider the puppy food you’re feeding your pooch. Is it as high-quality as you can afford? Always check the ingredients and formula to see if you’re feeding one of the best nutritious puppy food brands to keep your pup’s coat in top shape. A bad diet can cause a dull coat that’s lost its glossy sheen and cause their hair to fall out.
Gather the right tools for the task
In another blog, we’ll recommend specific pet hair removal products to help you implement these tips. For now, our tips for general items to aid your efforts for pet hair-free living will give you a starting point for knowing your options. It helps to have a variety of tools at your disposal to choose the best one for the job depending on what kind of surface you’re trying to clean.
This vacuum sucks
If it’s in your budget, invest in a quality vacuum, whether it’s one you operate yourself or a robot vacuum. Some are marketed specifically for pet hair. Go for multiple vacuums if it fits your budget (for example, a robot vacuum for each level of your home).
Get the best model your budget will allow - there are some that are self-emptying, have bagless containers, or even come with a hair-cutting feature on the brush roll so you don’t have to cut off hair from around the brush. Stay on top of emptying it regularly to give that hair somewhere to go and keep the sucking power going strong.
Dust bunnies, be gone!
Keeping your home dusted will make it shine and help your allergies, too. Make sure you clean from the top down, dusting ceiling fans, behind your refrigerator, or anywhere that dust can collect and trap hair. You can use a special furniture spray or dust with microfiber clothes or dryer sheets to further reduce hair from flying everywhere.
Put some moisture in the air
Using a humidifier will help add some moisture to the air, which makes it more difficult for hair to float around and helps hair stick better to surfaces for you to collect. This is especially important if you live in an arid climate or if your home air is dry from a heater.
You can also use a little bit of water to spray on your carpet before you tackle the hair there, or you can also use a damp cloth or sponge to help the hair stick to the product instead of your furniture, floor, car seat, bed, or clothing.
Filter your air
Using a HEPA filter, vent covers over your air filters, and fresh filters will help reduce hair as well. One tip for air filters is to buy several at once to be ready to change them when needed. Write the date you put in the fresh filter using a permanent marker, and be sure to set a reminder in a few months when it’s time to swap it out for a fresh one.
Speaking of filters, make sure you’re remembering to clean and replace any vacuum filters and clean lint traps and dryer lines to reduce the chance of hair catching on fire or clogging your appliances.
Laundry help
There are some tricks you can use in your laundry room to help reduce pet hair. Use a splash or two of white vinegar in your laundry to help dissolve and break down molecules in hair that help it stick to surfaces. Hair catchers can be used both in the washing machine and the dryer to attract hair, and non-toxic, pet-safe dryer sheets and fabric softener can repel hair as well.
If you have anything washable, make sure to wash it regularly! This goes for throw blankets, dog bed covers, bedding, or other soft areas your pets frequent.
Take cover
If your pets are allowed on the furniture, consider using a cover or special blanket. The same can go for your vehicles. You can make DIY covers or buy specially designed pet covers with material more conducive to pet hair removal.
Choose certain materials for your clothing
Some clothing fabrics catch and trap hair better than others, even after they have been through a dryer. If you really want to tackle pet hair, get selective with the types of fabric in your wardrobe and choose non-woven cloth for your clothing. Items with woven cloth, such as cotton or some polyester clothes, have a much higher chance of trapping hair than a smooth-surface fabric like silk or rayon.
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Get your puppy professionally groomed
A regularly groomed puppy not only looks great, but grooming can also help reduce and manage shedding. Groomers have special products to help remove loose hairs in the undercoats, special brushes, and blow dryers to remove dead hair growth. They can also recommend to you the best dog brushes for DIY grooming.
Brush your puppy frequently
Regardless of how often your puppy goes to the groomer, you will need to do some weekly maintenance brushing to help remove those dead hairs and keep their coats looking glossy and clean. Not only does it help promote a healthy coat but it also gives you a great opportunity to bond with your puppy.
Bathe your puppy as needed
Some dogs get more of that doggy odor than others, while other pups love romping around outside and getting dirty. Bathe your puppy regularly depending on its needs. A dirty coat can result in dirty hair all over your house. If your puppy is going to shed, at least make sure it’s clean hair!
Use an arsenal of tools at your disposal
One thing we cannot emphasize enough is that you will always want to be prepared to remove dog hair, especially before you leave your house, out on the go, or when guests come over. You may want to purchase lint rollers and refills in bulk and place one in every room or floor, one in your purse or workbag, and one in your car…you see where we are heading with this.
Other tools include pet wipes, rubber or silicone grooming mits, rubber brooms, upholstery hair removal products, and even duct tape that will all help you manage dog hair in your house.
Redecorate to be matchy-matchy
One trick that you might not have thought about is to decorate your home using furniture and flooring that match your dog’s fur so it’s less noticeable, even if it’s just a throw rug on hardwood floors. Of course, this depends on your budget, but a light-colored English Golden Retriever’s hair on dark hardwoods is riskier than a German Shepherd’s that blends in with the flooring or couch.
Professional help
When you’ve tried your best to remove every speck of dog hair, it may still be more than you’re able to tackle. Consider using a professional cleaning service if you need to, especially if you are moving out of a home or are doing spring cleaning with your puppy.
Find Your Furry Friend at Pawrade
Despite their level of fur, all puppies deserve loving homes. From doodle crosses that shed very little to the furriest friends around, Pawrade offers a variety of puppies for sale that can’t wait to be brushed!
Let our Puppy Concierge Team handle the difficult parts of adopting a puppy for sale while you can rest assured knowing that Pawrade protects you from scams with a secure transactional management platform, a comprehensive health guarantee for each puppy, and a network of hand-picked, pre-screen trusted breeders. We can’t wait to see pictures of your new furry companion!
