Cat hair, carpet and vacuum cleaners!?

[FLBK7]

I need advice from cat lovers in the forum. Dog lovers too!

My old vacuum cleaner died. No, it's not the belt, nor the bag, nor dirty roller brushes, etc. This time it's RIP. About time too, since the thing is almost 15 years old. And it's just as well, since it never did a good job of picking up cat hair from the wall-to-wall carpet I have in the bedrooms. All other areas are ceramic tile.

Now I'm in the market for a new vacuum cleaner and would appreciate recommendations from pet owners. What brand do you recommend? Any recommended specifications, such as wattage, etc.? I'm no expert at this AT ALL, I'm afraid.

My cat only has a short to medium coat, but he sheds an awful lot. I've read that indoor cats (which he is) shed all year long while cats that go outside shed mostly at certain times of year. I brush him daily but he still sheds so much! The vet says it's just common to his breed and that there's nothing wrong with him. I'm so glad he's trained not to go on the living room furniture! He sleeps on and sometimes IN my bed, but that's okay. He's my furbaby.

Anyway, how do you guys keep your carpet clean and relatively free of cat hair?

[Flamingo]

Rorschack (in photo in signature) came from a South Philly (think Sylvester Stalone and Rocky) momma street cat who was hit by a car, found by my daughter on the street and had a litter of kittens that night after a quick trip to the vet to ensure she was OK. Mamma and babies got adopted out and we kept one who had control of our house since May 2002. My first cat (always had dogs). Anyway, the hair....OMG...My youngest daughter is in college, still lives with us and works part time in a large chain pet store. She knows everything there is to know about cats and cat products and we've tried it all. Get the Furminator - eliminates lots of hair (do it outside) and keeps the shedding down to a bare minimum. Vacuums - there is a new one on the market that is recommended for pet hair (I believe it is by Bissel) - I plan to get it. Right now we just vacuum (and attachments for furniture) as much as possible and daily on furniture that he loves to lay on (rocking chair with soft pad is his favorite). Change vacuum bags frequently. The Furminator has really cut down on the amount of hair we used to have in the house - you just have to make it a point to Furminate kitty on a routine basis

You can never get rid of all the cat hair if you have a cat in the house. Everyone that has cats knows that and accepts it.

[yoyoma51]

We have 2 cats.

Last year we purchased a Dyson DC17 Animal and love it. We never spent more than $150 on a vacuum before this one and we wish we would have done it long ago.

It is by far the best sucking vac I've ever used.

[krielly]

We have a pug that sheds unbelievably.

We have central vac that doesn't really cut it.

I've heard about the Dyson Animal Vac, and thought about buying one, but it seems like a lot of money. Really worth it though, huh??????

K

[HRx]

I own an Electrolux and pretty much vacuum regularly to keep the hairs, and dust at bay.

[Cassiopeia]

We have a pug that sheds unbelievably.

We have central vac that doesn't really cut it.

I've heard about the Dyson Animal Vac, and thought about buying one, but it seems like a lot of money. Really worth it though, huh??????

K

I just got the Dyson Animal several months ago. YES, it IS really worth it. UNbelievable. I can't recommend it highly enough. And yes it is HUGELY expensive, but if you can go for it you won't regret it. It is so far beyond better than the "typical" vacuum it isn't funny. NO comparison.

I call it my "Cadillac" vacuum, !

[danaf]

i've heard the dyson animal is one of the best out there too but it is pricey.

[One Half Full]

There is a powdered stuff called "hair release" by Arm and Hammer. It neutralizes the static cling that causes pet hair to stick, that way, I can use my old 7 year old vacuum cleaner-- which doesn't seem to be nearly dead yet. My carpet is wool. I wonder if the type of carpet makes a difference? I don't get much hair otherwise. My chairs are leather, I have a hardwood floor. My dogs are short haired and shed very little, and I have 2 cats, both short haired.

[krielly]

LOL. In my next life "after BK 13 is discharged", I hope to have leather furniture and hardwood in my living room as well. Well, maybe at least Pergo laminate............

For now, I may splurge with my stimulus rebate and buy the Dyson Animal....... After all, I WILL be helping the economy, right? LOL!!!!!!!!!!

K

[One Half Full]

LOL. In my next life "after BK 13 is discharged", I hope to have leather furniture and hardwood in my living room as well. Well, maybe at least Pergo laminate............

Having a cool living space is not about money. In all, I calculate that my total Living room and dining room furniture cost (besides the rug, lamps and wall art) was 613.00 but it took me about 6 years to collect.

It's funny, but the leather furniture is all from salvation army or garage sales. 99% of my furniture is from yard sales, a used office supply store, habitat for humanity, salvation army, and one great chair I picked up on trash day by the side of the road. The only things I've bought at "real" stores are the lamps. I even painted my own pictures!!! The wood floors were original to the house. They are actually softwood. Hardwood is just what everyone writes. I took up the nasty carpet. They are not the greatest, just pine, and have stains and scratches. (Actually they are southern yellow pine-- 100 years old). I want to get them sanded and put a nice gloss finish on them. They will look nice, but there will still be a few "patches. The wool rug, I bought at a hardware store, deeply discounted.

[krielly]

Believe it or not, the leather sofa and the laminiate floors are all about the dog hair........not a vanity thing

They'd look nice of course, but it's more about the battle against the puggie hair then anything else.

I don't even have softwood sub floors, so laminate is my only option! used furniture is also ok in my book........good idea!!!!!!!

K

[One Half Full]

I like reading "Dwell" magazine, and most of my stuff is what they call "mid century modern." It is easy to find where I live. People here prefer the victorian "golden oak" look so I can get a lot of great deals. I really prefer to take my chances on garage sales.

Anyway, I've seen these houses decorated by people like me who really prefer to use re-cycled furniture, materials, and even things like flooring. There was one where the person just used sealed plywood cut in squares and finished or painted. It looked really great and was probably was a pretty cheap option. I figure if you can't find it at Habitat, you don't need it.

I want to do my laundry room with this idea. I'm going to cut squares about 12X12 inches and then paint some black and some white and have a checkered floor.

[$$only4ever]

I have 2 cats and have an Oreck. It really vaccums about 95% of the cat hair, but like someone else previously stated, if you have cats (or dogs) you will never get rid of all of the hair.

[FLBK7]

Wow, thanks for all the replies!! This forum is the best, even for non-BK-related stuff. I think I'm going to check into the Dyson Animal and pay for it with my tax "rebate." The timing of this "rebate" couldn't be better, huh? I need a new vacuum cleaner anyway, so may as well get one that does the job. That'll be my way of "stimulating" the economy, duh...

Flamingo, when I first read your reply and you mentioned "Furminator" I got a major attack of the giggles. I had never heard of it and the name immediately made me think of Arnold Schwarzenegger AKA the Terminator battling cat hair in California. LOL!!! I looked it up on the web and now I understand what it is. I'm going to stop by PetSmart tomorrow to buy one. It apparently removes the undercoat, so that should help a LOT. Thank you for this tip!

Someone at work also mentioned that in-between vacuuming she runs a slightly damp Squeegee mop over her carpet and it picks up a lot of the cat hair. I tried that a little while ago and by golly, it DOES work! This doesn't replace a good vacuuming, of course, but it helps.

Thanks again, everyone.

[Flamingo]

You will love the Furminator and I'll bet it's called that in regard to your reference to the Terminator since it really terminates or furminates pet hair! LOL! Make sure you do it outside until you get used to using it. It will cut down tremendously on your household hair accumulation, believe me!