DIY Dog Smell Removal

My sister says I'm "nesting" - I don't fully buy it. I like to use the word "prepping". I'm preparing for the arrival of our parents. I know it's only January 25th and I won't see my in-laws until February 10th but I will see my parents on February 6th ... which means I need to de-dander my couch. Even though my dogs smell nice and pretty (they get baths on a regular basis), my couch does NOT smell nice and pretty. Add a few layers of other people's animals to it and you can see why my couch sucks. We "inherited" the couch from our previous landlord who told us to keep it when we moved out. But she sold the place before we could move out and we're still here. Craig won't throw out the couch because we won't be here for much longer but the thing is gross and smelly. To make matters worse, my apartment is old and no matter how much cleaning gets done, it always looks dirty.

Nesting???

 So, maybe I am nesting. What of it??? Just kidding. I'm still on bed rest so my energy is low but I successfully reorganized a closet today. Why? I wanted a place to put my winter blankets that usually wind up on the couch covered in dog hair. I'll admit, it was a little cathartic. A little. Yet, I still feel like there's more work to be done. Since my Dad is allergic to the dogs, I'm trying to keep the house as dust-free and pet-dander free as possible in anticipation for his arrival. This will be tricky because my dogs LIVE on the couch. We never really taught them not to get on the couch because we actually enjoy cuddling with them there. I can't cover my couch in plastic so I'll do the next best thing and Google "how to get dog smell out of couch".

No nudity on this blog!

Ya know what I found? A lot of nothing but I did find a few quick solutions that will work wonders when done consistently over time. The first set of pet smell removal solutions involves white vinegar, water, lemon juice, and baking soda ... just not all together. That would be so awkward. According to GetSmellOut.com, I can even use vodka as a short term solution for getting rid of pet odor.

I've decided that since I'm home, I'm going to try out a new DIY segment on the blog... it'll be dedicated to the methods I use to get rid of the smell of my pups. My first step, asking you what you do to keep your house smell-free. So, what do you do?

I think my next step will be taking 1 cup of baking soda and 4 drops of lavender oil - sprinkling it all over my couch, then letting it sit for an hour. Then I vacuum it up. It's supposed to take up all the moisture and kill the dust mites.

Step 3 will be to take a bottle of vodka and drink it, and spray my couch with it. Let it dry then vacuum again.

Save for cleaning or save for later??

Step 4 will be to mix equal parts lemon juice and water into a spray bottle, spray it on my couch, let it dry and ... you guessed it, vacuum.

This might lead me right up until my Dad gets here which means I'll re-do step 2 (baking soda and lavender).

OK... maybe I am nesting.