My Must-Have Products for a Multi-Pet Home

I have a lot of must-have products I depend on for our multi-pet home.

Life with dogs is messy.

Covered-in-dog-hair, coated-in-drool, stained-by-dirty-paws, M-E-S-S-Y.

Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t trade any of my four-legged babes for all the tea in China (even if that tea came without the benefit of a stray dog hair floating in it).

But that doesn’t mean I don’t fantasize about training them to run a vacuum cleaner or give themselves baths.

Since neither of those is likely to ever happen, I depend on a number of tools and products to help me maintain a three-dog household (and my sanity). Some of these items I’ve mentioned in other posts, but now I’m putting all my gotta-have-it dog care and cleaning items together in one place.

Just in case you also have four-legged, fur-covered babies you love but who create messes you don’t.

CORDLESS VACUUM

Oh, Dyson, how do I love thee? I’m starting off this list with my Dyson V8 Absolute Cordless Vacuum because it is, quite literally, my number one must-have for a multi-pet home.

I can never go back to any other vacuum. This thing has made that much of a difference in my home.

I actually wrote an entire post about it when I first started using it (you can read it here) and my love for it hasn’t changed.

Because the pup squad (also known as Jackie, Lady Westside, and Lola) shed enough fur to build a whole new dog on a daily basis, vacuuming is a priority around here. It’s the one chore I do literally every day.

But only because of my Dyson.

If I had to haul out my old canister vacuum and do the whole plug-vacuum-unplug-move-plug-vacuum-repeat deal every day, these floors would be shameful.

On a full charge, I can vacuum the whole house (upstairs and downstairs) twice. And, because it’s so lightweight and easy to maneuver, it’s also great for tackling stairs, window blinds, baseboards, and couch cushions.

When I say this cordless vacuum has changed my life, I’m actually not kidding.

But, she ain’t cheap. I did a ton of research and price comparison before I pulled the trigger on this purchase. Ultimately, I purchased mine refurbished (like this one).

And it’s totally fine. Over a year later and I’ve had no issues with it.

But if it ever does break, I will absolutely buy another Dyson.

I also recommend using a good de-shedding dog shampoo to help limit the amount of shedding and, therefore, the amount of vacuuming.

STEAM MOP

I have this strange pet peeve where I prefer my floors to be clean and not just a dirty canvas of dirty paw prints. So number two on my list of must-haves has to be my steam mop.

I’ve used traditional mops with a bucket full of hot water and hard floor cleaner. I’ve even tried using a Swiffer Wet Jet.

But using a steam mop makes not just my floors, but my whole house, feel cleaner.

And as an added bonus, it literally requires nothing but water; no acid green or fluorescent yellow chemical-laden cleaners necessary. I’ve been making a conscious effort to replace a lot of my household products with cleaner, more natural products for the past year (You can check out some of my favorite natural products here).

Trading out my old mop-and-bucket routine for a steam mop was one of the best changes I’ve made. No matter how hard I tried or which product I used, I always felt like my regular mop left behind a film of cleaning solution.

With my steam mop, that’s no longer an issue.

And it doesn’t have to break the bank. I recently upgraded to this model and I’m loving the adjustable steam output option and the longer cord. However, I used this under $50 steam mop for over a year and, for a budget-friendly option, it got the job done.

STAIN REMOVER

This is one of those products that you really wish you didn’t need but are always thankful to have on hand when you do.

Even the most well-trained pup has an accident sometimes. And, if you’re luck is anything like mine, it always happens on the carpet.

I’ve had fur babies for most of my life, so trust me when I say I’ve tried a lot of stain removers.

And this one takes the cake.

The dogs have yet to create a stain this stuff can’t handle. And that includes the time Lola had tummy issues in the middle of the night (oh, the horror). I’ve even used it to get red wine stains out of a white shirt.

It’s also a green brand and non-toxic, so I don’t feel the need to hold my breath when I douse the carpet with it or cordon of the area with crime scene tape.

It isn’t necessarily the cheapest pet stain remover but, in this case, the old adage “you get what you pay for” applies.

DETANGLING/CONDITIONING SPRAY

I’d like to take this time to apologize to my mom for every time she had to listen to me cry and scream while she brushed my tangled hair as a child. I don’t have a little girl who’s knotted hair has to be brushed out yet…but I do have a Lola.

And Lola does not care for being brushed.

Or bathed.

Or de-matted.

All of which are necessary due to her long coat.

With Jackie and Lady, we never needed more than a simple pin brush for grooming. Neither of them has long coats, so neither of them ends up with wads of tangled, matted hair. Prior to Lola, I didn’t even know canine detangling spray existed.

I only wish I had found it sooner.

As it is, I only started using it a few months ago and, boy, does it make a difference!

It seriously helps the brush glide through her thick fur and untangles knots with a minimum amount of pulling (which means less yowling from Lola).

I also started using it on the other dogs on occasion because it does condition their fur as well and helps their coats really shine.

Currently, I’m using an all-natural, DIY recipe. After I heard about doggie detangling spray I did a little research and found this recipe. Since I had all the ingredients on-hand, I gave it a shot. Two thumbs up! However, I also plan to test out this store-bought brand that has great reviews for comparison.

NO-PULL HARNESS

When we first brought Lola home, we knew puppy training classes would be in order. It wasn’t something we had bothered doing with Jackie or Lady, but neither of them weighs 70 lbs or have dumb stereotypes attached to their breed.

One of the main things we worked on in puppy training was leash etiquette and heeling (not pulling/ walking directly by their owner’s side).

It turns out that even after 12 weeks of puppy classes, Lola still has a tendency to forget her manners when she gets excited. And, since I prefer to keep my shoulder in its socket, buying a no-pull harness became a priority.

There are a few different styles of harnesses on the market designed to discourage pulling, and some of them can be kind of pricy. Ultimately, I decided on this one that had good reviews on Amazon at an extremely affordable price. That way, if it didn’t work, I wouldn’t be pissed about wasting money.

But I can happily report that we’ve been using the same harness for a year and it works great.

This specific harness has leash attachments on the back and the chest. (The chest loop is the one we use to discourage pulling.) It’s also well-padded and made of reflective material for nighttime walks.

Outside of its ability to slow Lola’s roll on walks, my favorite feature is the handle on the back. Great for providing a little extra control when crossing through traffic or discouraging overly friendly pups from trying to give strangers kisses.

And while all of these products make maintaining a multi-dog household much easier on my sanity, I’m still waiting for the day someone figures out how to train a dog to vacuum up their own fur.

Want to get to know our fur babies? Check out this post!