How to Get Dog Hair Out of a Carpet – 5 Easy Ways

Updated on Jan 15, 2024

As a dog owner, you are probably used to seeing dog hair lying around your house. Shedding is inevitable, so you cannot do much to stop your dog from dropping their hair all over the place. You can, of course, keep them off the furniture and make sure that they spend plenty of time outside. However, if your dog spends any amount of time inside the house at all, there will inevitably be dog hair to clean out of the carpets.

So, what is the best way to get the hair out of carpets? Besides vacuuming, there are a few different techniques that you can use. But no matter what options you try, vacuuming should always be your first step. If you still see dog hair lying around after you vacuum, try one or more of the following ways.

The 5 Ways to Get Dog Hair Out of a Carpet:

1. Use Fabric Softener

person cleaning the carpet — Image Credit: VGstockstudio, Shutterstock

Liquid fabric softener can work wonders when trying to collect dog hair that is embedded in the carpet. The liquid attracts the hair, and the stickiness of the softener keeps the hair clumped together as you pick it up. You should dilute the fabric softener with 20% water before spraying it on your rug.

Once your rug gets damp, you can use a paper towel or a gloved hand to work the dog hair out of your carpet and into a pile that is easy to dispose of. It is important to choose a fabric softener without any added dyes or scents because you will not be able to rinse the solution completely out of your carpet after you have cleaned the dog hair up.

2. Use Something Sticky

A lint roller can make the job of picking up surface hair easy and convenient. Do not expect it to lift hair from within the fibers of your carpet, but it will definitely make your home ready for a visitor. If there is a large amount of hair to pick up, try wrapping duct tape around your hand, sticky side out, and blotting the hairy areas to pick the hair up. Either of these options works especially well on small-area carpets and welcome mats.

3. Use a Hairbrush

Believe it or not, a basic human hairbrush can pull difficult-to-reach dog hair out from within your carpeting’s fibers so you can vacuum or pick it up and dispose of it once and for all. A wire brush works best, but any straight brush should work. Purchase a brush to use just for this purpose or donate your old brush to the cause and buy yourself a new one. No amount of cleaning the brush after using it to extract dog hair will make it suitable for human use again.

4. Use a Squeegee

Rubber squeegees feature natural gripping functionality that attracts dog hair and conveniently collects it into a pile so it can easily be discarded. By rubbing the squeegee along your carpet, you should be able to pull hair up that you did not even see embedded in it. Short, rapid movements should produce the best results. You can use a large squeegee to work your way through the whole house or a smaller one meant for vehicles to work on area rugs and furniture. What is great about rubber squeegees is that they are more effective than any adhesive options and do not leave behind any residue, like fabric softener and tape can.

5. Use Grooming Gloves

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While grooming gloves are typically used to make dogs and cats look nice, they can be used to remove pet hair from your carpet. Just put them on, and start rubbing the carpet to pull hair out of it. Then, you can vacuum or sweep the hair up and discard it. The gloves may be quite hairy after you finish cleaning up, so a thorough wash and dry will likely be in order.

Dog Hair & Carpet: In Conclusion

With the help of these tips and tricks, you should never have a problem getting dog hair out of your carpet again. You may want to try all the options that are available before deciding which works best for your household and lifestyle. Which options have you tried in the past, and which do you intend to try moving forward? Be part of the discussion by leaving your thoughts in our comments section.

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Featured Image Credit: Mariia Boiko, Shutterstock