With Spring just around the corner your mind is probably making a list of things that need to be washed, fixed or repaired, especially with Easter just around the corner, writes Grantham pet expert Sara Barnes.
My mom started this last week and while tidying the kitchen cupboards found some cans with best before 2022 dates, so those went in the bin. Now dog toys don’t have a best before date, but dog treats do, so it’s worth checking the dates on treats you may have lying around the house, if they’re out of date, or you don’t remember when you opened them it’s probably a good idea to remove them.
Now, back to the dog toys. When was the last time you cleaned your dog’s toys? If they are the ones in the house, I hope you are thinking that it is not that long ago, but what about the ones in the garden? Toys that your pets leave in the garden are likely to cause stomach upset and possible parasitic issues that your dog may be suffering from. Be mindful of garden toys, they can be slugged by slugs and snails, other animals or easily dropped by your dog in dog poop and other garden nasties.
In an ideal world we shouldn’t leave the dog’s toys in the garden overnight and pick up any rubbish as soon as possible after the dog has done its business. Even monthly deep cleaning of toys is a good idea, and if you have a multi-dog household and the toys are shared, you can do it weekly.
So how do you clean their toys? My suggestion is that anything hard is put in a dishwasher or washed in a washing up bowl as you would your own plates and cups. Anything soft can go through the washing machine with an antibacterial detergent. Just be careful what you put in the tumble dryer and if you choose to dry them on the washing line, your dog isn’t tempted to try to jump up to pull them down.
Happy cleaning!
