Good Questions: Quick Pet Hair Cleanup?

Margie has has a pet question:

"Hello AT! It's quite a production to extricate my full-sized canister vacuum cleaner from its tiny closet. So I'd like to have a smaller more manageable device to quickly remove the cat hair from the couch on a daily basis. I used to have a handheld vac that was a piece of junk, so I don't want to repeat the same mistake. Any suggestions?

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Link To All Good Questions

Hi Margie,

There are a lot of things on the market now to help remove pet hair without dragging out the vacuum. One of our long time cat-owner friends highly recommends this 10" wide roller from Evercare. She says "We keep one in the front hall closet, for the sofas, and one upstairs for the chair the cats sleep on. I got mine at Target, but you can also get it at drugstore.com. It's easy to assemble and inexpensive. I buy the re-fills online at drugstore.com so i can throw them in for free shipping. It covers a larger surface area, so it doesn't take quite as long to roll, and the sheets on it seem to be stronger than the average roller... it's just not as wimpy." We've also heard rubber dishwashing gloves work really well. Here is a link to some more suggestions (for cat hair). We're sure there are a ton of AT:LA pet owners, so what are your suggestions for quick pet hair cleanup? Share in the comments!

Comments (17)

I've used a damp dish cloth - and old one I threw in the rag pile, and in a pinch, I've run my wet hand over the areas where they sleep. That's just my between-vacuumings solution, or for unexpected company.

What about a lint brush? I don't have a cat, but I imagine this might work.

A lint brush works but it takes several sheets (my cat is large and fluffy) so it's kind of wasteful.

I have a lint "sponge" type thing that is reusable (I've had it for a year now) and it works great on cat hair, it's a square rubber sponge that just kind of collects it into a big ball. I love it...I think you can get them at cleaning supply stores?

I'm almost the same as oceandreamer but I use Febreze to moisten the area that way it will smell nice as I get the fur off.

Also on small area rugs if you dampen the rug (again I use Febreze) then sweep you'd be surprised how much fur there is.

I put on a thick latex glove (like the type used for dishwashing and housecleaning) and run my hand over the couch a few time. It grabs all the hair and keeps it together in tidy knot that you can then pick up and through away.

I mean, you can throw it away.

I didn't mean a sticky type of lint brush. I have one that's some sort of fabric where you rub it one way to collect the lint and rub it the other to get the lint off the brush (sorry, I don't know how else to describe it). Like this - http://www.drugstore.com/qxp75941_334918_sespider/evercare/magik_brush_2_sided_lint_brush.htm

I use a small wire brush. Of course, you can't use it on knubby textures but it's great for ultrasuede and all tight woven fabrics. Other than that - packing tape.

I agree with Jonathan - lint brushes are great!

The Evercare roller mentioned above is perfect, we just picked one up last weekend. It really makes pet fur removal quick, simple, and almost effortless.

my dog, Bunny, sheds more than any animal ive ever met and i've managed to get by with a Dirt Devil handheld for quite some time.

heres a trick though: i keep three sheepskins on my couch (one on each cushion - its an 8 ft couch) and Bunny usually picks one to plop down on (shes about the size of a cat). once a week, or before guests come over, i give each sheepskin a good shake outside or even stash them in the closet. they protect the couch from getting all hairy and i dont have to constantly brush, wipe, rub, or vacuum the couch!

our cats leave a lot of hair on their favorite chair. What I found that works very well is a rubber glove (like the platex ones you can get at pretty much any discount store or home big box store).

Make sure the 'nobby' palm part of the rubber glove is slightly damp and just run it over the mat or chair that the cat likes to lay on.. Most of our furniture is a cloth ikea type chair so it doesn't ruin the fabric and is easier than having to remove & launder the chair pad itself. I've also tried it on the various carpet runners and sisal rug with no problem. (you also don't get that hair all over your own hand nor waste the lint roller.. we used to try the lint roller but it was a major pain and didn't get all the hair up). The glove also works better on the thick carpet and corners that the vacuum doesn't get up. Just toss the ball of cat hair and your done!

Thanks for all of the suggestions!

guercus and meekorouse are right. rubber gloves are a great idea. you don't have to buy anything (if you already use them), plug anything in or throw anything away. it's a great and simple solution.

I like Sara48's idea of using the Febreeze and I'm almost sure I've got one of those rubber gloves stuffed under my kitchen sink - I'm trying that next time.