Having a clean home protects us from harmful bacteria and viruses and creates a healthy and comfortable atmosphere. For homes with pets, cleaning your home in a pet-friendly way is essential. Household cleaners are a common cause of poisoning for cats and dogs, so you must know which cleaning products are safe and pet friendly.

Effects of Toxins

Toxins are bad for our health and are harmful to the planet. Many people think you have to ingest the chemical for it to be dangerous. However, toxins are just as damaging to breathe in as to be around. These toxins pose a threat to us and our pets. The contact made with these chemically cleaned surfaces can negatively affect our pets’ health.

Inhaling or ingesting chemicals can have dangerous effects on our pets, especially with their heightened senses of smell. Being around toxic chemicals can cause dizziness, headaches or nausea. Ingesting poisonous chemicals can have life-threatening effects. If you think your pet has ingested a chemical, take them to the vet right away.

Going Green and Pet-Friendly

There’s no time like the present to change your ways. You can make your natural products at home. These DIY products will be safe for your family, including your pets, and you’ll know everything that’s in them. It’s also quick, easy and cost-effective!

Making homemade pet-friendly cleaning products does save you money in the long run. However, pet-friendly and green products are popular in the market and can be purchased commercially. Make sure you do your research before buying any cleaning product.

Many healthy alternatives

Getting Started

Many people don’t want to throw out the commercial products that they have on hand – and rightly so. We recommend starting simple and gradually swapping your commercial cleaners for pet-safe and homemade organic products as you finish those toxic bottles. We promise it’s a lot easier than it seems!

When you’re ready to replace your old chemicals, we recommend you start collecting the following products:

  • Spray bottle
  • Distilled water or boiled (then cooled) tap water
  • Box of baking soda
  • Table salt
  • Bottle of white distilled vinegar
  • Oils (almond, olive, vitamin E, mineral, coconut)
  • Castile Soap (bar or liquid form)
  • Fresh lemons.
  • Washcloths or old rags
  • Pure, essential oils (which are great for their antiseptic, antibacterial qualities) smell so good: Rosemary, tea tree, lavender, rosemary, peppermint, and lemongrass are just a few).

A simple search online can result in many free recipes. From carpet cleaning, carpet stains, floor cleaning and eliminating pet odors, there is a recipe for all household cleaners. With these natural ingredients, you can create many organic pet-safe cleaning products for all your household chores.

Helpful Resources

If you prefer to have a personal copy of pet-safe organic cleaning products, we recommend the book “The Organically Clean Home: 150 Organic Cleaning Products” by Becky Rapinchuk. It comes with simple instructions on how you can get started. It also contains many practical hints along the way. This book has received great reviews, and it’s FREE if you subscribe to kindle unlimited!

Here’s a sample of an easy pet-safe recipe from “The Organically Clean Home: 150 Organic Cleaning Products”:

Liquid Dishwasher Detergent

What you need:

1 cup of castile soap

¼ cup distilled water (or tap water that is boiled and cooled)

1 teaspoon of lemon juice

5 drops of essential oil (lemon)

Combine the ingredients, and voila! Use one tablespoon of the mixture per load and run your dishwasher as you normally would. Becky suggests putting distilled white vinegar in your dishwasher’s rinse compartment if you’re worried about hard water spots. This detergent also lasts and has a 3-week shelf life!

Contact Us

We believe that cleaning your home in a pet-friendly way can not only improve your pet’s life but your life as well. These organic mixtures and cleaning remedies will give you one less thing to worry about your pet’s health and safety. If you would like to know about the pet-safe cleaning products we use for pet sitting and disinfecting, please contact us.

Just Around the Corner offers daily Dog Walking , Dog Hiking, and Pet Sitting in Plymouth, MA. To learn more about how Just Around the Corner can help, check out our Services Page. You can also Contact Us for more information. Be sure to Like us on Facebook and Follow us on Instagram!

We’d love to hear what your “go-to” natural cleaning products are? Happy cleaning!