Excessive pet hair

Sitter Questions, Advice & Chat
1

Animals shed hair, that’s just part and parcel… but what do people do about sitting certain breeds who shed vast amounts? I’ve just returned from looking after some wonderful cats. However I’ve had to chuck a few pairs of tights, and spend quite a lot of time de-hairing some clothes caked in hair with cellotape, but there’s still a heap left and now I’m finding it on clothes I didn’t even take with me!

The owners didn’t provide one of those clothes roller things and I didn’t think about it till during the sit.

How do you de-fur your clothes after a very hairy sit? :slight_smile: x

2

I usually pack clothes I don’t care much about when I do sits. Avoid black. Bring my own roller.

So if pets shed a lot, nibble on my clothes or such, I usually don’t care much.

Some fabrics also are more fur and fuzz resistant than others.

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3

I try to be a bit proactive on sits like this and will ask the HO about grooming and then brush their pets regularly as well as vacuum, etc.

I sat a Leonberger and although I was only there for a weekend, had I been there longer I probably would have groomed and vacuumed almost daily.

If the pets are kept up, they do tend to shed less hair but I know for many that would be excessive.

I like @Maggie8K’s suggestions as well…take slick materials and clothes you don’t care about.

4

Aside from using lint rollers, have found that washing clothes with a good fabric softener can make it easier to remove the fur.

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5

BTW, depending on the sit pet and location, maybe brush them outdoors, like if there’s a fenced yard. That way, the hair stays more outside than on furnishings, which can then rub back onto you more easily.

6

I am the same as @Maggie8K , wearing “slobbing about clothes” for around the house.

We looked after a labrador often, he would get excited if we came downstairs with our “going for a walk clothes” on. However, if we came downstairs with our “going out out clothes” on, he would just go straight to his bed and sulk.

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7

Or we could start wearing more furry fabrics, LOL. Camouflage!

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8

We also have “house sitting” clothes that are mostly Lycra, tech fabrics that don’t collect as much on hairy sits :rofl::raised_hands:t3: This one is a classic fur fest with two enormous German shepherds. We are hoovering daily & also try and allocate human sofa space & dog sofa space if they are sofa dwellers. And we have one of those roller things with us too. #furfestfun

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9

I travel with one of these, fantastic.

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10

I have that one I travel with also.

11

You probably already know, Cuttlefish, but using a rubber glove to remove pet hair off sofas etc works a treat

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12

I didn’t know that @ziggy, thank you! Will try that now as we depart our sit tomorrow morning, so it’s clean up time with a Lab & 2 furball cats!

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13

Works every time, Crookie. Hopefully it will work for you x

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14

Yes, had forgotten about the rubber glove trick @ziggy We use damp ones to give the dogs a good rub down at home with the labradors :raised_hands:t3: #morefurfestfun

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15

I’m not sure about how to dehair afterwards, but I think you could at the least provide private feedback to owners maybe about brushing the cats daily, or offering rolls to help clean off clothes, maybe an ask by the HOs for daily vacuuming to keep the situation under control, etc. I might also consider mentioning it tactfully in a review as a heads up for sitters.

16

My strategy is different clothes for different areas of the house, if possible. Lycra or more slippery clothes for cuddle/lounging/even work spaces. A different pair of comfy clothes just for my bedroom so that at least one area is somewhat contained from hair. And stick with it! If you forget, then you’ll get hair all over the bed and have to start from scratch! Those sticky lint rollers are still my favourite.

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17

For cats, I’ll use a cat hair stripper if they’ll tolerate it. Getting the old,dead hair off seems to make them feel and look better. Not to mention the shedding. A lot of times the’ll enjoy a stripper brush.

18

“stripper brush” sounds like a Furminator, is it? It’s either that or something in the dressing room of my local “gentleman’s club” :smile:

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19

Uh oh, I may be using made-up terminology. That’s what happens when you are full time sitters and you spend a lot of time talking only with your partner. It’s a good thing we have this forum.

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20

And/or pets :laughing:

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