This post is sponsored by Swiffer and Febreze!
Almost exactly one year ago, on Mother’s Day, this super shedder (I almost wrote “shredder” which is also true), joined our family.
My dog history is that I desperately wanted one as a child, but never got one. Tears were shed to no avail. I grew up dogless.
I did have a pair of birds at one point and while birds are nice, they are not dogs. I desperately wanted a dog.
The first Christmas after my husband and I were married, we gave his parents a puppy.
I canNOT believe we did this. Knowing my new family like I know them now, or even like I knew them a few short months after our ridiculous idea, I look back on this gift-giving decision in complete bewilderment.
Getting a dog is a big decision, mostly because it’s a big commitment.
For a year after the Christmas Surprise, we were told that “Princess” would be our dog the minute we got a house with a yard.
Strangely, that tune changed right around the time we started actually looking to buy a house with a yard. Princess turned out to be one of the best things that ever happened to my in-laws. They became quite the trio, and for years, she signed our birthday cards along with my mother-in-law and father-in-law.
We did get our own dog as soon as we had a house with a yard, and I now can’t imagine living without a canine family member. (See Mom and Dad?? I was right!!!)
But when we added Cinder, I found that I had a whole lot to learn about the reality of bigtime shedders.
She sheds when she runs. She sheds when she snuggles. She sheds when she breathes.
And while I’m surprised at the fact that my love for her somehow makes me okay with this, my love doesn’t make the shed piles magically disappear.
And that’s why I’ve made the executive decision that adding a little Swiffer green to my living room decor is okay.
I have two official spots for my Swiffer Sweeper. One is its “real” home in the laundry room. The other is its unofficial official home in the living room. See how it’s kinda sorta hidden?
Because we have a non-stop shedder, I have accepted our reality and chosen to embrace that the only way to live within that reality is to Swiff.
Regularly. And often.
Here’s the thing. With hard floors, dog hair tends to gather at the edges, up against the walls. And while tuft by tuft is the ideal way to Swiff it up, there’s also the OH MY WORD SOMEONE IS COMING OVER reality. In these moments, I focus on the edges of the room.
It takes me one minute and seven seconds to do one quick glide around the edges of my living room. (Really. I timed it.) And one imperfect glide around the edges with my Swiffer Sweeper is enough to make me feel so much better about letting someone inside.
I mean, they can’t expect much if they’re a last minute self-inviter and I’m me, but getting the mega-tufts Swiffed up makes a shocking difference in how I feel about my living room.
But still, it’s nice that Swiffering is silent, to keep my shed-problem a little more secret in case I’m still dealing with it as they’re standing outside the front door.
Also, it’s important that I remind you of a few of the key things I’ve learned in all my Swiffer studies. First, change Swiffer Sweeper refills when they stop working, not when they look dirty. The sweeper pads can go longer than you’d think. Second, the top of the Swiffer Sweeper’s handle isn’t slippery. It’s made to be able to stand up against the wall, so it’s secure in that small corner.
And the Swiffer Pet refills that include Febreze also help me feel better about the reality of dog scent.
That, plus a quick spray of Febreze Fabric Pet Odor Eliminator on Cinder’s favorite spot on the couch allows me to open the front door without panicking over pet mess.
You don’t have to fear shed filled pet messes with the help of the Swiffer Sweeper and Dry and Wet Pet Refills with Febreze Odor Defense that Trap + Lock or Swiffer Dusters and Heavy Duty Pet Refills which you can find at Kroger.
Tell me about your fur fighting strategies in the comments to be entered to win a $50 prize package of Swiffer products! Continental U.S. only (sorry!), must comment here on the site, giveaway will close May 23, 2019 at 9 p.m. Central. Winner must respond to my email within 48 hours or I will have to choose another winner. See all my giveaway policies here.
--Nony
Giveaway closes April 4th??
I thankfully don’t have a dog right now, but having had one most of my life… do the brushing outside! It makes such a difference because the single hairs that float around forever land outside, not all over the house.
April 4th? June 4th maybe? I’m lucky if I know the day of the week though, let alone the date! LOL!
We luckily get dogs that don’t shed (my husband has allergies) but we have had shedding cats. And yes, being able to just quickly swiffer up would be AMAZING!
Oh thank you! I fixed it!
My cat would sleep on the bed, keeping my feet warm over long winter nights. The amount if cat hair that was on the floor and furniture was unbelievable.
I have three cats that all shed like crazy! I try to brush them as often as I remember to (being 7 months pregnant I’m forgetting a LOT these days) and sweep and vacuum a few times a week to try and keep up on it. The sad thing about sweeping is the fur with fly around more than I catch on thr broom to sweep up. I bet a Swiffer would do just the trick!
My biggest fur fighting tool is a shedding blade. Holy crap for fur from ONE CAT. I’ve taken pictures of the pile of fur removed next to the cat. I could have made kittens from all that fur. I also have a Furminator that works great too. The shedding blade is stored on a ledge in our garage right by the door to the backyard, so it’s easier to just grab when the cat’s in the backyard, which is the BEST place to brush her since she’ll roll around while she’s being brushed. Then she’ll walk a few steps, roll around… It’s just easier. We also have a Dyson vacuum cleaner that we’ve had for 14 years. That sucker (literally) is still going strong. Our plan is to eventually replace our carpet with wood laminate, so a Swiffer will be amazing for getting the fur that accumulates in the corners. (Which I’d rather it all move to the corners than just stick to the carpet wherever it falls.)
I have two cats and this time of the year, shed control on hardwood floors and tile involves the vacuum cleaner! A quick Swiffering would be much easier. They love to be brushed, but I don’t find that that cures the shedding problem, though it may reduce it.
Febreeze is our friend here too, and I love washable bedding covers and inserts! Our Shepherd loves to hang out on the front porch and sheds EVERYWHERE (especially now that it’s warmer weather!). My secret weapon for the porch is the leaf blower; the hair goes out of the corners and into the yard for a birds to use for their nests!
We have a hand held vacuum that hangs discreetly on a wall charger in the kitchen. I have definitely been busted multiple times doing a quick vacuum as guests are standing on the front porch. Vacuuming up hair balls has always been a daily chore for one of our kids. Unfortunately that child left for the Air Force in January so the hair balls are a constant reminder of how much we miss him.😢
Our biggest dog sheds and we get the tumbleweeds at the edges of the room too! I usually use the vacuum (the central vac helps) but I definitely need to start dust mopping the edges, and the awkward spaces under/around the couches, in-between vacuum days. Febreeze is a lifesaver too!
We have a Roomba that we set to run every day when we’re at work, and that helps a lot. However, we still have to do a lot of picking up of the clumps that seem to float around and wait to land until after Rosie (yes, we named our Roomba after the robot maid on The Jetsons) finishes her job. A Swiffer set would be way easier!
We don’t have a dog inside…problems solved. We DO have many dust bunnies and such… we use a mini shop vacuum to attack the dust, dirt, and such. A Swiffer would be a great idea for quick (and quiet) cleaning, especially by younger children.
We have mostly carpet in our home right now, but dust and pet hair seems to settle all over our dark colored furniture. Right now, I use a duster and then go over it with Pledge and a rag to try to repel dust. I would love to eliminate the chemicals altogether!
We have two dogs. My current fur fighting strategy is to vacuum daily. Would love a Swiffer!
I have a dog & cat & 2 birds, that’s alot of seed, feathers AND fur. Yes Swiffers are great, however so is rubber gloves for removing pet hair from the couch & the Dustbuster for the dirt from muddy paws on the kitchen floor. The the Swiffer Wet Jet to remove the remaining mud paw…Gotta love the Swiffer stuff!
For our carpeted areas we would use the rubber “brush” sold by either Don Aslett or the Fly Lady (I can’t remember which). This worked so great!… Where is that thing?… !
We have dogs that are supposed to “blow coat” which means that they have one big shed for a couple of weeks, then they’re done. Turns out that is a lie. Or they take turns blowing. There are constantly tumbleweeds of furn rolling around the floors of our house. To make it even more challenging, our youngest dog, Star Jackson, (her first name is Star, but she’s miss Jackson when she’s nasty) attacks the vacuum cleaner with incredible force. Our strategy is for my husband to distract the dogs while I try to race through the house at high speed with the vacuum before the dogs figure out what’s happening.
I use a dust mop to get the loose hairs. My pet sheds small random hairs (short haired dog) that get everywhere! Add in kids & the fact that the dog loves to dig & it’s a recipe for sand, dirt, & dog hair everywhere. If I have time I will vacuum & then sweep followed by the dust mop before I do any actual mopping.
My family has 4 humans and 5 dogs (all rescues)! Every single on of them sheds. It is quite difficult to maintain the floors with that man dogs. We vacuum frequently, but these Swiffer/Febreeze products would be great to test out!
We deliberately got a dog that doesn’t shed. Ever. But that doesn’t fix the muddy paw prints on the floor. Love the wet jet for that.
What type of dog?
I bought a simple dust mop from Walmart— it makes doing a quick swoosh-through in-between “real” cleaning sessions to pick up dog and cat fur easy (and tiny objects that the baby will inevitably try to eat).
I also try to use a good shedding brush outside for the dog or at least earlier in the day when we’re already planning to clean!
I am a senior citizen with two large dogs and anything that can make my life easier is a perk. Thank you for letting me enter.
For the bathroom (tiled floor), a hair dryer works wonders!! Blow the dog hair into a corner and it becomes a lot easier to pick up with a damp paper towel. Lol!
I will gladly live with dog hair rather than live without a dog!
I also love a large sponge to run over the upholstery to pull the dog hair out of the couch or even the car seats! Packing tape also works but it seems to be too much waste to do that too often.
My mother has cleaned houses, churches, and businesses for years, and I love the little trick she taught me on how to get rid of pet hair off cloth surfaces, like couches and chairs. It’s also fun for the kids to help with! Put on a rubber glove and rub your hand along the surface. You pick up more than you even realized was on there! Simple as that!
I just stopped stressing over it… unless someones coming over 🙂
Then we vacuum!
We have 1 dog & 3 cats that or indoor/outdoor so yes we have to vacuum often. This would be a huge help.
We try to keep stress-shed inducing activities (aka nail trims) outside so it doesn’t have to be cleaned up!
Petless but not messless. I like the Swiffer because it’s lightweight, reaches deep under furniture, and picks up crumbs and dust. (Plenty of dust and sand blows into the house in Las Vegas.)
We have a German Shepherd and our roomba helps tremendously, but it’s still never enough on our laminate floors. There’s a lot of vacuuming and dusting and lint rolling happening at our house.
We have 2 dogs and golden retriever and a mountain cur. Sophie (the golden) sheds every minute of the day! We love our dogs and they add so much to our lives. I sweep up the hair now but would love a Swiffer set to use. Thanks Noni!
We have a dog and two new kittens! Planning a big renovation this summer to change our carpet into wood floors, and would love the Swiffer set to help out with all the animal hair! Nony/Dana I LOVE your books and blog!!
No outfit is complete without cat fur! Pair fur with a pre-schooler and I need all the swiffer help I can get. I sweep almost daily, but its tough to get all of the little things.
I also brush my kitties outside, its very hard to keep up this time of the year.
I have used the brush I use on my kitties on my furniture to get the bulk of the
hair then I do a good vacuuming.
Brushing my shedder would make a big difference. I need to add that to the “do the dishes” and “sweep the floor” habits which made a noticeable difference. My “sweep the floor” should say “Swiffer the floor”, it gets under low places the vacuum can’t get to including under the edges of the fridge and stove.
this will definitely help with my cat that sheds when he sits on us or breathes. He is so big and fluffy!
thanks for the give-away!
Beth, check your email!
🙂
We have 3 cats and 1 giant Golden Retriever, plus 3 messy kids and 1 tidy one. We also live in Florida now, so they shed year-round with the warmer weather. (The pets, not the kids. Mostly.) Then on top of that, my husband insisted on installing wood floors, and I reluctantly relented. I prefer carpet because the hair stays in one place until I vacuum, and kind of blends in from eye-level in between vacuums. But with wood floors it feels like I never get it all up because it floats and travels, hijacking a ride on anything that moves. So instead of vacuuming once per day (in theory, that is) I need to sweep up the wood floors 2-3 times per day for the same look. (Again, in theory – I’m not actually that on top of it. It’s why I need Dana’s inspiration.)
So… One of our strategies is that we intentionally have leather furniture (slightly distressed leather so a little scratch or scuff doesn’t destroy the look) so no pet hair gets stuck or embedded on the cushions, arms, back, etc.
Another strategy is to brush the pets, outside, regularly. We have a Furminator plus a cat brush for that. But of course nobody really does that very often either.
We also have a mini-vac that actually I use every day. But it’s tedious and noisy!
I need to get a couple of these Swiffers and try it out. (Even if I don’t win the drawing!) Thanks for the tip!
I have a labrador (so she sheds January – June, and July – December), and despite a shedding comb, regular baths, etc., she still SHEDS. I love that with the swiffer I can hand it over to my 6 year old and have him help out! I still have to vacuum 2-3 times a week, but it helps so much on our hardwood floors. I found some reusable cloths for them, too…a little more eco-friendly.
I don’t have a pet, but I kinda consider myself one. I shed like CRAZY; I’m surprised I’m not bald! I kid you not, I’m constantly picking up blond fuzz balls of my hair everywhere! What the heck is up with that?! It’s not a new 48-year old thing, either! This has been happening all my life!
(Yes I realize that I use an exorbitant amount of exclamation marks, but dadgum it, they’re needed!!!!!) HAHAHAHA!
No pets in the house – or does Hubby count. Maybe a coincidence, but since he started taking Crestor then generic, for the first time in his 60+ years his gorgeous,
curly head of hair is thinning!
If there is anything I can’t stand it is HAIR on things – especially in the kitchen and on clothes, where it can fall off onto ANYTHING.
Son and DiL have 4 indoor cats and a dog who is mostly indoor. I would probably SHARE with them.
THANK YOU, Dana!
And GOOD LUCK to all the other posters
At one point we had 3 (3!) well loved Labrador Retrievers. Then our eldest daughter returned home with her Golden Retriever. 4! very large dogs who shed – a lot!! (We were also fostering puppies for a rescue organization at the same time lol) I used to joke that I could make another dog out of the fur I cleaned up every day. We used a commercial sized dust mop for our hard floors and vacuumed daily in the one carpeted room. I didn’t think the Swiffer could handle that amount of fur! We’re down to just 2 dogs now, but still a lot of “rabbits” fluffing around. Prove me wrong and get me hooked on Swiffer!!
I wash dog blankets frequently AFTER I shake them outside to reduce some of the dog hair on them!
Recently picked up the Swiffer Heavy Duty Pet Dusters, and love them! Also went back to an actual Swiffer sweeper instead of a dust mop. My floors and furniture definitely look better when I actually use them! Ah, the hair tumbleweeds. Keeping up with them should be a daily job. Who wants to come do that for me?!
My only strategy was to stay on top of the shedding. I brushed religiously and swept and vacuumed daily.
We have two 80 lb. labs and a cat so I NEED this swifter set!
I try to remember to have the kids brush the dog frequently and we sweep often.
We have a Great Dane, an English Mastiff and a Chihuahua. I try to vacuum and sweep daily but that rarely happens. We have leather furniture & utilize couch covers that I wash regularly, which helps with dog hair on furniture. A Swiffer would be great for keeping up with the floors! Thanks for doing this give-away, Dana!
With my cat I have this glove that I put on and it brushes her as I pet her. This eliminates majority of the shedding if I do that daily.
Also I have a Roomba that gets most of the dust and cat hair. My cat thinks it’s a toy and chases it around the room.
I’d love a swifter though to get the random bits of dust bunnies and fur out of the corners.
My solution to fight fur is to not have pets. I use the neighbor’s pet and when the futon gets “eyelash hair” (she’s a black dachshund) I don’t care because eyelash hair looks cool. I guess I could turn the futon over, but I love the neighbor’s dachshund.
I’ve lost the battle against the hair tumbleweeds, however, a swiffer would give me an advantage to get back in the game!
No pets but new dark wood floors that show dust, carpet fibers and my own blonde hair in surprising amounts. When the sun shines in the corners, it all shows up up!
Our fur-fighting strategy is simple: our dog lives outside! Ha! He sheds a lot… But we do have some wood flooring, and the dust, etc. does really gather around the edges.
We have a washing glove with fingers that help remove shed undercoat. It’s still a mess though!
May 23, 2019 at 10:55 am
I have three cats that all shed like crazy! I try to brush them as often as I remember to (being 7 months pregnant I’m forgetting a LOT these days) and sweep and vacuum a few times a week to try and keep up on it. The sad thing about sweeping is the fur with fly around more than I catch on thr broom to sweep up. I bet a Swiffer would do just the trick!
Unfortunately the dog I grew up with died. But back when his fur was a big challenge for us, we had no solutions! I tried sweeping and vacuuming but always missed a spot and just couldn’t keep up! I tried brushing his fur often but that too doesn’t work. So I wish we had a swiffer then! Sounds a lot easier than what we tried!
Even without a dog, I can so use a swiffer these days…. with little kids, hair that falls to the ground, dust and smog from the outside– I can’t keep up and a swiffer would really help that!
We live on a farm and have a big dog and a cat that live (and shed) in our house. We mostly have wood floors and the dirt and fur floating around is endless. Sometimes I feel like it’s just my house that has to be swept several times a day (which I don’t do, by the way…so I’ve made it my goal to do at least once a day) so it’s good to hear that others have the same struggle. 🙂 Thanks for the encouragement!
Hi! I enjoyed this post and really liked the comments. Just validation that with pets that shed, we all fight the fur balls floating and gathering along our floors. I have 3 indoor cats. Right now, shedding is apparently their big gift to me. I do use all Swiffer products and Fabreze. I just wanted to comment on their new pet products. So, I swiffer my wood floors daily & more @ times. Used my Shark cleaner on my area rug and the light was shining on my swiffered floors. Shocked at the fine cat hair that was still on my floors. Vacuumed it up, Great, now what? I do not want to do this every day!! Happen to be in Petco and saw the display for the new products. Yeah right , I thought !! Still being hopeful I did buy the Swiffer floor duster clothes. WOW! Did the same as before. When I turned on my vacuum light… gone… this new baby, picked all the fine hair up!!! Yippee! I am so excited and happy! A+ rating!!!! I spray Fabreze Allergen on my rugs and furniture when done! Love this product!!
Wow, I am not sure I have strategies. I think I have surrendered to the animals. At one time we had three inside dogs and two cats. Out of five wonderful creatures, all but one was a rescue. We are currently down to 3: a tiny chihuahua and two beautiful cats that were rescued a year ago from a drainage pipe. To wrangle the fur we sweep, use dust mops, mops…. just about anything to try and keep the fur under control. The animals are winning!
We struggle with the fur. I, like you, have also noticed fur loves the corners but in our house it loves every nook and cranny it can work itself into. Unfortunately, it also loves to stick anywhere the animals have been such as clothes, furniture, drapes (the cats are climbers), etc.
We love our pets so we put up with the fur.
By the way, you may want to invest in a shedding blade and brush the dog outside. You will be surprised with the quantity of hair that will come off Cinder and she will feel so much better and maybe your corners will not fill as quickly with fur.
We have multiple German Shepherds, two of which are in the house. I swear I sweep up a litter everyone I sweep.
I’ve just read your chapter on one small thing. Since my kitchen is on the front porch (except for my frig… it’s in the family room) due to new flooring, my small thing will be the sweeping. Only a Swiffer won’t quite cut it. It’s big old dust mop here.
One thing I use (to save money and be eco friendly) is the Flylady Swiffer-type mop and washable cloths. The surface area is MUCH bigger than a Swiffer and I have 3 cloths, so when they are all dirty I wash them (on delicate). They are micro fiber cloths so they pick up a LOT. To keep them from needing to be washed as often, I actually vacuum them off with our shop vac until they aren’t really picking up anything more. WAY cheaper than disposable cloths! The Flylady web site is Flylady.org but you could Google it. You can even wash your floor or your shower walls with these cloths!!!!!!!