Sunday, January 19, 2003

L I F E S T Y L E

Quick, smart cleanups can help pet acquire manners

Dr. Marty Becker - Knight Ridder

Hundreds of thousands of proud new pet parents welcomed a puppy or kitten into their homes this Christmas. The joy, the excitement and -- oh yeah -- messes!

Jeff Goode from Phoenix can definitely relate. This Christmas, he got a female Labrador retriever puppy named Emily for his 10-year-old daughter.

"She was so excited to welcome our newest family member," Goode says. "We're enjoying the playful side of Emily, but not the messy side. So far, the dog has done her business in every room of the house."

"Don't get mad at your new pet if it messes where it shouldn't," says Janice Willard, a veterinary ethologist of Moscow, Idaho. "It's just a baby and doesn't know any better.

"It is your job as pet parents to gently teach your new fosterling what is acceptable behavior, lessons they would have learned from their canine or feline family if they had not come to live with us.

"Having puppies or kittens in the house is a `totally organic experience,' so try to keep your good humor about it. Getting mad and using punishment doesn't help them learn any faster and only creates fear and harms the bond.

"Instead, watch for when your pet is most likely to go potty: after eating or when waking from a nap. Take them to the appropriate place, give them space so they don't feel threatened and praise them for the correct response.

"If a mess happens, don't sweat it. Just clean it."

Cleaning up pet accidents successfully is all about the three "C's": Beat the clock, deep clean, and know the chemistry.

The longer it sits, the more permanent the stain becomes, so you should beat the clock by deep cleaning the accident as soon as possible.

Even if the spot is removed, the smell may linger (if not for you, the pet).

This is where knowing the chemistry comes in. It is very important to remove the odor completely; otherwise your pet may hit the same spot again, and again, and again thinking it is its new toilet. Get the smelly picture?

Dogs and cats have supersensitive noses, so you'll want to be wary of products that mask smells rather than eliminate them chemically.

Close to home, it seems our wirehaired fox terrier, Scooter, had found a spot on an expensive Oriental rug in our bedroom that was easier to pee on than going outside in freezing weather. No matter how fast or deep we cleaned (the clock and the clean), she continued to come back to that spot.

We had ignored the chemistry.

Luckily, I found a powerful new weapon to help in the house soiling/house cleaning wars. Called Petrotech Odor Eliminator, this all-natural, nontoxic spray revolutionizes the science of odor removal.

Petrotech's patented process encapsulates the odor source and continues working until the odor is completely eliminated. It is available at pet stores, online at

www.sea-yu.com, or by calling (877) 854-6624.

Other products include Nature's Miracle and a product with the delightful name of Anti-Icky Poo (www.mistermax.com). Rather than masking the odor, these products use enzymes to break down the chemicals in pet eliminations.

Of course, there's still the issue of cleaning up spots and preventing stains.

For urine spots, dilute the area with water and then put down an absorbent layer like paper towels and step on it several times to make sure you've sopped up the entire mess. Another beneficial product is Oxyclean.

To prevent fecal stains, it's important to scoop up the poop without spreading it any further than necessary. Use a spatula or piece of cardboard.

If you use a spatula, you should have a designated pooper-scooper spatula in the house, which you don't keep with kitchen implements, for obvious reasons.

Even older pets can sometimes have accidents, particularly if they become ill, so having designated cleanup tools can be handy. Then use warm water and the cleaner of your choice to remove the spot.

The cleanup challenge you face also depends on the kind of rug you have.

Different fabrics react differently to various stains and cleaners. Make sure you test a section of carpet with a particular cleaner before pouring it on.

When it comes to pet stains that have sat awhile, it can be nearly impossible to remove them completely. Try mixing one cup of vinegar to a gallon of warm water.

If all else fails, you can cut out the stained section of rug and replace it with a patch from the closet or under the couch. But, of course, you should wait until the pet is completely housebroken, so you don't end up with a patchwork quilt underfoot!

The Goode family is taking Emily's mess in stride. Jeff says: "We knew this was part of owning a new puppy. It will take some time to get her housebroken. In the meantime, we'll be following our pooch around the house with a sponge."

•Dr. Marty Becker, a Bonners Ferry, Idaho, resident, co-authored the best seller, "Chicken Soup for the Cat & Dog Lover's Soul." He is also the popular veterinary contributor to ABC-TV's "Good Morning America." His latest book is "The Healing Power of Pets" (Hyperion)

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