Pet-Safe Cleaning: What's Actually Dangerous

Cats and dogs walk on your floors and then lick their feet, so floor cleaner is effectively something they eat. A few common South African cupboard staples are worth rethinking.

The ones that matter

• Pine gel and phenol-based disinfectants. Cats lack the liver enzyme to process phenols efficiently. Pine and coal-tar type disinfectants are a genuine risk in cat households, particularly used undiluted or on surfaces cats walk on.
• Bleach. Useful and sometimes necessary — it is the standard for parvo — but rinse thoroughly and keep animals off until dry. Never mix with ammonia-based cleaners; the gas produced is dangerous to everyone.
• Concentrated ammonia. Smells like urine to a cat, which encourages them to remark the spot. Counterproductive as well as irritating.
• Essential oils. Tea tree, eucalyptus, citrus, pine and peppermint are all problematic for cats, and diffusers concentrate them in the air. "Natural" is not a synonym for safe.

What to use instead

For general floors, warm water with a small amount of unscented dish soap, or a quaternary-ammonium household disinfectant used at the labelled dilution and allowed to dry. For glass, one part white vinegar to four parts water. For deodorising, bicarbonate of soda sprinkled on carpet, left an hour, then vacuumed.

Cleaning up accidents properly

Ordinary cleaners remove the smell for you but not for the animal, which is why they return to the same spot. Use an enzymatic pet cleaner, which digests the proteins rather than masking them. Blot rather than rub, apply generously enough to reach as deep as the urine went, and let it dry naturally without covering it.

Storage is half the battle

Most poisonings are not from residue on a floor — they are from a dog that got into the cupboard under the sink. Childproof latches work on dogs too. Keep antifreeze locked away and clean spills immediately; it is sweet, cats and dogs drink it readily, and even small amounts cause fatal kidney failure.

The garden cupboard too

Snail bait, rat poison, herbicides and fertiliser all belong on a high shelf in a closed container. Rinse watering cans and check that the garden service is not leaving open bags behind the shed.