How to Clean Pet Kennels
Most pet owners treat their animals like other family members, even buying them presents on holidays and birthdays. Cleaning up after your pet regularly is important to their health and well being. How often your kennel should be cleaned will be determined by the amount of time your pet spends in them. Outside dogs especially need more frequent kennel attention. A clean kennel will make a real difference in your pet's health.
Things You'll Need
- Bucket
- Water hose and nozzle
- Household bleach
- Neutral Q disinfectant
- Antibacterial dish soap
- Scrub brush
- Towels
- Plastic sprayer
- Poop scoop
- Gloves
- Move your pet, bedding, toys, and all other loose items away from the kennel area before you begin the cleaning process.
- Pick up all trash and solid waste, and dispose of them in the garbage.
- Mix a weak household bleach solution of 4 ounces of bleach to each gallon of water. Pre-rinse the kennel with water first and spray the bleach solution on all kennel areas. Neutral Q disinfectant is a good alternative to bleach if you have puppies or just want a safer alternative.
- Wash and disinfect the entire kennel top to bottom using bleach or Neutral Q and the scrub brush. Allow the disinfectant solution at least 30 minutes to work before thoroughly rinsing everything. Use lots of hot water, if possible. Bleach can corrode metal and make your pet sick so be sure to completely rinse everything well including all metal items.
- Wash and rinse all pet dishes, toys and litter boxes with hot water and antibacterial dish soap. Let everything air dry completely before bringing any pets and fresh bedding back into the kennel. Dirty rugs and blankets will attract fleas, so avoid these as much as possible and use dog beds instead.