My Favorite Finds for Pets
If you follow me on Instagram or have been within earshot of me this summer, you know our family grew by four legs with the addition of our golden retriever puppy, Cosmo. My kids have been begging for a dog for more than a decade, but given how outnumbered we were by kids, we were reluctant to add anymore responsibility to our already full roster!
After years of resistance and our little ones turning into bigs, we decided just maybe there was room in our home and hearts for a four-legged friend. Months of research lead us to a breeder out of Indiana whose prized goldens were bred to be mellow, companion tempraments. After waiting for an available male through three separate litters, we finally got our turn to claim one as our own.
A huge reason I fought the whole dog idea was the inevitable mess that comes along with them. I admittedly like my home clean to a fault. I joke the condition of my home is a reflection of what’s going on in my brain - the more organized and tidy I can keep it, the more smoothly things are running mentally. A cluttered, dirty or deferred maintenance home fogs my mental clarity making me overall less productive. So the big question became how I was going to maintain my sanity with a shedding breed.
Two months in I’m here to report that even with 6 people to share the responsibility, nothing about having a puppy is easy (I can’t imagine tackling it on my own!) With that said, our hearts have grown more than twice their size welcoming our new furry friend to the family. I’ve learned that it’s just going to take more work to keep the house in the condition I like - and reminded my family that that responsibility falls on all of us. Below I’m sharing some of the products I’ve been using to keep our home clean and orderly despite a rapidly growing golden retriever puppy (projected to reach 80+ pounds!!!).
1 - Crib Sheet & Mattress Protector
We opted to crate-train Cosmo, meaning he sleeps and spends time in a kennel throughout the day and overnight. To keep his kennel from becoming a haven of dirt and odors, a friend recommended covering his kennel pad with a waterproof mattress protector and fitted crib sheet. I bought a set of two so that each week, we can throw them in the washer and swap them out for a fresh set. This has worked BRILLIANTLY and kept his kennel area looking fresh!
2 - Neater Feeder
Under the recommendation of my brother, we opted to purchase a Neater Feeder for our pup’s food and water. It’s AMAZING the spills this thing collects as Cosmo’s dribbly lips go from food to water and back again. I throw the whole thing in the sink every couple days to keep it from getting grimy.
These collapsable silicone bowls are great to store in the car or throw in a bag when you know you’ll be out and about with the pup. Of course mine go directly in for a wash after they’ve been used - we keep them in a drawer in our mudroom to grab as we head out the door.
4 - Floor Mat
Someone warned me I would need to have a towel near Cosmo’s water bowl but I had no idea just how far they can splash their water when they drink. The Neater Feeder is the first line of defense, but this rug protects the surrounding tile from collecting inevitable spills. We have these on hand for winter boots but they also work perfectly for keeping under your pup’s feeding station.
Would not be surviving without a proper food storage container. No surprise that dog food is not the most attractive fragrance and curbing odors is an absolute must. We keep the food in the bag and further store it in a plastic, sealed lid container. Of course there are ALL kinds of opportunities to customize this, which we absolutely took advantage of using our Cricut machine.
6 - Command Hooks
Always looking to make things more aesthetically pleasing, we used simple Command Hooks to dress up our food storage bin with fun little additions. A cute food scooper that we hang on one and a small hand towel for drying paws or spills.
7 - Bubbly Paws - A MUST!
Hands down, the best tool we’ve used for keeping our pup clean (and therefore our home!) is a regular visit to Bubbly Paws. If you’ve never been, Bubbly Paws is a self-service dog wash with multiple locations throughout the Twin Cities (and recently franchised nation-wide!). We visit their store at Excelsior and Grand for an easy, convenient way to bath Cosmo 1) without having to create a mess at home and 2) using their amazing smelling products, combs and colognes so Cosmo looks (and smells) his best! The kids think it’s a blast!
8 - Dyson Stick Vac
I am yet to fully commit to purchasing this cordless vacuum but I’ll admit I could be sold just about any vacuum on the market right now. After much research, this Dyson Stick Vac has multiple attachments that are ideal for combatting pet hair. With a purebred golden retriever, there’s no getting around the shedding and staying on top of it is critical. To date, I’ve used my broom/dust mop combo but a vacuum would be better at catching the ‘tumbleweeds’ that are tricky to catch in a broom. Anyone have a vacuum they swear by for pet hair? I’m all ears!
This eufy RoboVac came highly recommended for addressing pet hair. There have been so many similar products to come to market and they vary so widely on pricepoint. This particular model is known to be a great value and performance can hang with the best of them. While it might lack in some of the latest bells and whistles (apparently now they mop?) - it acts as a first line of defense and lengthens the time you can go between deep cleans.
We actually purchased this portable carpet cleaner before getting our pup for a rogue mud-on-carpet incident. It’s proven to be a worthwhile investment as a pet owner too. We were fortunate Cosmo was pretty well house-trained when we got him, but the reassurance of knowing we were armed with tools for addressing accidents or stains was priceless.
To some degree, you just have to roll with the punches. Our homes are for filling with love and memories and sometimes that comes at the cost of perfection. As much work as a puppy has been (and I’ll be honest that it’s A LOT!), we wouldn’t trade this guy for the world. And seeing my kids lights up when they’re around him makes it all worthwhile. Click the video below to see the kids’ reaction to his surprise arrival.