How to remove dog smell (and cat smell) from your house

Step by step

1. 1

   Wash every pet fabric

   Gather dog beds, cat beds, blankets, throws, cushion covers and slipcovers and wash them in hot water as the care label allows, with baking soda added to the detergent. Make it weekly.

   Why: These fabrics hold most of the hair, dander and skin oil that make a house smell like a pet.

2. 2

   HEPA-vacuum the whole house

   Vacuum carpets, rugs, upholstered furniture, stairs and pet hangouts with a HEPA-filter vacuum. Use washable throw rugs where the pet sleeps.

   Why: Hair and dander carry odor. A HEPA filter keeps fine particles from blowing back into the room.

3. 3

   Black-light for hidden urine

   At night, with the lights off, scan carpet, furniture, baseboards, corners and walls with a black light. Mark every glowing spot.

   Why: Old urine is often the real source of a house's pet smell, especially with cats, and it's invisible in daylight.

4. 4

   Treat each spot with an enzyme cleaner

   Saturate each marked spot with an enzyme cleaner made for pet urine, deep enough to reach where the urine went, and let it air-dry. Repeat on old spots.

   Why: Enzymes break down urine residue that ordinary cleaners leave behind, so the smell and the pet's urge to return both fade.

5. 5

   Reset the litter box

   Scoop regularly, and empty the box completely and wash it with mild soap and water every week. Replace a box that still smells after washing, and skip scented litter.

   Why: Old waste and residue scratched into the plastic are a constant source. Many cats dislike scented litter and may go elsewhere.

6. 6

   Filter and ventilate

   Change the HVAC filter, use a high-efficiency one, and run a HEPA air cleaner at least four hours a day. Open windows when the weather allows.

   Why: Filters catch the dander that carries odor, and fresh air dilutes what's left.

7. 7

   Bathe and dry the dog

   Bathe the dog regularly and dry it thoroughly afterward.

   Why: Bathing removes the oil and microbes that make dog smell, and wet fur releases more odor until it dries.

Where pet smell lives in a house

General pet smell comes from skin oil, hair, dander and the microbes that live in a healthy coat. All of it builds up in pet bedding, upholstery, carpet, curtains and HVAC filters, and those soft, porous materials keep releasing odor into the room. Humidity makes old smells, especially urine, seem to come back.

A sharper, ammonia-like smell usually means urine. Cats in particular can mark walls and furniture as well as floors, and an old spot can scent a whole room. See cat urine for spot treatment by surface.

Why plug-ins and sprays don't fix it

Fragrance covers pet smell for a short time while the hair, oil and urine stay where they are. Removing those reservoirs is what lowers the smell, and it also cuts allergens. The pet odor page explains where dog and cat smell comes from in more detail.

By situation

Cat pee smell in the house

Black-light every room, including walls and furniture legs, and enzyme-treat each spot. Urine that soaked into drywall or carpet padding may not come out, and the saturated section may need replacing. For carpet, see pet smell in carpet.

Dog smell even though the house is clean

Check the dog's bed, your couch cushions, curtains and the HVAC filter. If the dog itself smells rancid or yeasty soon after a bath, ask a vet: yeast overgrowth and ear infections cause strong odor.

Urine on wood floors

Urine can discolor the finish. Enzyme-treat the spot; boards stained through the finish may need refinishing or replacing.

Pet allergies in the house

The same steps help: weekly hot washes of slipcovers and pet blankets, HEPA vacuuming, and a HEPA air cleaner running at least four hours a day.

What not to do

• Don't rely on plug-in fresheners or scented sprays. They mask the smell while its sources keep releasing odor.
• Don't clean pet accidents with ammonia-based products. Humane society guidance warns ammonia can draw the pet back to the same spot.
• Don't mix bleach with ammonia or acids. The combinations release toxic gases. See never mix.
• Don't run an ozone generator with people or pets at home. EPA says ozone irritates the lungs and doesn't remove odors at safe levels.

Other methods that work

Baking soda on dry carpet and upholstery

Sprinkle baking soda, leave it several hours and vacuum it up to absorb leftover odor.

Caution: It doesn't remove urine residue.

Replacing saturated materials

Carpet padding or drywall soaked with urine may need replacing when enzyme treatment can't reach it.

Stain still there?

The house still smells after a deep clean

There's an urine spot you haven't found. Black-light again, including walls, under furniture and inside closets.

The smell is worse on humid days

Humidity reactivates old urine residue. Re-treat known spots with enzyme cleaner and keep humidity down.

Safety

• Keep pets away from cleaned areas until they're dry, and follow the product label.

Never mix cleaning products; see chemicals you must never combine.

Questions

Pet odor elsewhere

• Pet odor: what causes it and how to remove it
• Pet odor in carpet
• Pet odor in a couch

Other smells in the house

• How to remove burnt smell from your house (burnt popcorn too)
• How to remove fish smell from your house
• How to remove musty smell from a house
• How to remove skunk smell from your house
• How to remove smoke smell from a house (cigarette or fire)