How to Remove Dog Wee and Other Stains from Carpet – Without Harsh Chemicals

No matter how well-trained your dog is, accidents can happen: maybe they release some ‘excitement pee’ when a new friend comes over or they’re sick and have a bout of diarrhoea on the carpet. Whatever the situation, every pet parent should have a strategy for cleaning up pet urine and poo stains.

This simple, three-step pet stain and urine odour remover uses natural, eco-friendly products that you probably already have in your cupboard. Best of all, it works just as well as shop-bought, pet-stain removers – without any harsh chemicals.

How to get the dog pee smell out of carpets

This homemade stain and odour remover also works well for mild stains like tomato sauce – it cleans and deodorises without leaving any residue. You can also store this pre-mixed solution in a spray bottle to apply to pet pee stains and odours quickly. Before using, test this pet stain remover technique on an out-of-the-way spot to be sure it won’t discolour your carpet. Here’s everything you need to know about how to get dog pee out of a carpet or rug.

What you’ll need

• paper towels or cloth towels (paper towels seem to work best)

• white vinegar

• water

• bicarbonate of soda (and time for it to absorb any smell)

• vacuum cleaner

Step 1: blot, don’t rub the stain

Figure out where the urine-soaked area is and clean it up swiftly. Use a paper towel to blot the pet stain dry. Rubbing the stain with a towel only serves to spread the stain or urine more, so unless you plan on rearranging your furniture to cover that stain, pat the stain with a paper towel.

Replace the paper towel with a fresh one when it’s no longer soaking up the dog urine. Keep blotting the stain until the spot is fairly dry and little urine comes up on the towel.

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Without getting grossed out

Step 2: apply the vinegar cleaning solution

To get the pee smell out of carpet, mix together a cleaning solution of equal parts water and white vinegar in a small bowl. Soak the area with the water/vinegar solution and then let it sit for five minutes. Scrub hard to make sure you get deep into the fibres below the carpet’s surface to remove any lingering pet urine.

For particularly bad wee smells or stains on your carpet, use a 100 percent vinegar solution. It’s important to let the solution soak into the carpet as it does two things: it helps to cut through the pet stain if it’s being especially stubborn and re­-wets the stain so you can make sure that all the pet urine is lifted off the carpet. The vinegar neutralises the ammonia in the dog urine, helping to neutralise the smell and cleaning the urine from the carpet.

Step 3: sprinkle bicarbonate of soda, then wait

While the spot is still wet, sprinkle bicarbonate of soda on the affected area. Pour a little of the vinegar solution on top and mix. Right away, you’ll see and hear it fizzing and crackling as it starts to lift the pet stain and urine smell from the carpet. It helps to rub in the bicarb with your gloved hands or a brush to get it deep down into the carpet fibres.

Leave the bicarbonate of soda on the carpet until it’s completely dry. This might take a day or two, or it could just be overnight, depending on how much water/vinegar solution you used and what the temperature’s like in your home. Once the bicarb mix is completely dry, vacuum your carpet thoroughly, and voilà, your carpet is as good as new.

How to get dried pee out of carpet

If you’ve found a spot of carpet with urine that has already dried out, there’s nothing to fear. This vinegar solution also works remarkably well for dried dog urine that has already set in, though you may have to use a little elbow grease. First, rewet and rinse the affected area with water. Blot the area as directed above, removing the urine. Then, jump to step two above and continue to work the stain.

Tips for removing dog pee smells and stains from carpets

Clean up pet urine quickly

When it comes to pet urine, it’s best to act quickly because if the pee gets soaked into the padding underneath the carpet, the urine odours may be impossible to get out. At that point, you may need to replace the carpet or get a professional carpet cleaner that uses water extraction methods to get your carpet clean.

Do not use steam cleaners

Avoid using a steam cleaner to clean pet stains and urine. The heat can actually bond the protein from the urine into the carpet fibre, making the stain and smell more permanent.

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Avoid pet stain removers

Although it may be tempting, do not use ammonia-based cleaners or other cleaning chemicals with strong odours to clean pet urine on carpets. Ammonia-based cleaners do not effectively cover the pet odour and may actually encourage your dog to reinforce its urine scent mark.

Leave baking soda to absorb

Bicarbonate of soda is known for its smell-eliminating powers, but it can take time to work its magic. Tackle canine-created odours in your carpet by sprinkling the bicarb on the surface, waiting 15 minutes (up to 24 hours for really strong smells), then vacuuming. You can do the same with your dog’s bedding, too.

Hydrogen peroxide is your friend

If the vinegar solution doesn’t remove the pet stain, try upping the power with a bit of hydrogen peroxide. Use a ratio of equal parts vinegar and water along with a ¼ part of three percent hydrogen peroxide (eg 200ml vinegar and water, with 50ml hydrogen peroxide). This solution is safe for pets and carpets, but be sure to test it on the corner of the rug to ensure it doesn’t cause discolouration.

Use an enzyme-based pet urine remover

Another great choice as an alternative to the vinegar solution is an enzymatic cleaner. These specially formulated cleaners use natural ingredients to remove stubborn urine odours. The enzymes actually digest the stain and odour-causing proteins in the pet urine neutralising the smell.