Natural Ways to Get Rid of Dog Urine Smell

When house training a new puppy or dealing with an incontinent older dog, you may have to frequently clean up the dog's accidents. Dog urine not only stains fabrics and porous surfaces, but also leaves behind an unpleasant odor. To clean these stains and spots, you don't need to use harsh, commercially available cleaners. Instead, use natural, environmentally friendly ingredients to clean your dog's urine and keep your house smelling fresh.

You can use oxygen bleach to clean and disinfect both fabric and solid surfaces. Mix 4 oz. of oxygen bleach powder with 1 gallon warm water and use this solution to shampoo carpet and upholstery urine stains. Wipe down solid surfaces like walls and flooring with the oxygen bleach solution to clean spots your dog has urinated on. For tough stains, mix 1 tsp. oxygen bleach with 8 oz. warm water and work it into the stains on upholstery and carpeting with a scrub brush. Saturate the area well with the oxygen bleach mixture to treat the carpet padding. Add 3 tsp. oxygen bleach to your laundry for washable items your dog urinates on. This will remove odors and odor-causing bacteria in the stains.

Use grapefruit seed extract, a biodegradable and nontoxic cleaner, to clean and freshen dog urine stains. Combine 15 drops of grapefruit seed extract with one gallon water and use it to wash solid surfaces to completely remove dog urine and kill any odor-causing bacteria. Take this solution and use it to clean carpets or upholstery by dousing the area of the urine with it and allowing it to dry naturally. The cleaner leaves behind no residue and requires no rinsing. For serious stains and odors, saturate the area again and allow it to dry. Unlike vinegar, another natural cleaner, grapefruit seed extract has no unpleasant odor.

Derived from the Australian melaleuca alternifolia tree, tea tree essential oil has natural cleaning abilities to kill bacteria and fungus. Due to these properties, tea tree oil will both sanitize and deodorize pet urine stains on both fabric and solid surfaces. Combine 2 tsp. tea tree oil with 2 cups of water to make a cleaning solution. Blot and rinse the urine stains with water and blot again. Place the solution in a spray bottle, saturate the urine stain completely with it and allow the area to dry naturally. For washable items, place them in the washing machine with 1/2 tsp. tea tree oil to deodorize and disinfect the dog urine stains.

Natural cleaners will leave behind no harmful residue in your home and you can use them safely around your dog or other pets. You can use them in conjunction with other natural ingredients like baking soda to deodorize the urine stains and help remove them. After spraying the stain with the tea tree oil solution, sprinkle baking soda on the area and work it into the stain. Allow it to dry and vacuum away the baking soda to freshen and clean fabrics, porous surfaces and carpeting. Tea tree oil has a strong scent that will dissipate, but if you prefer, you can mix it with an equal part lavender essential oil and eight parts water to make an aromatherapeutic cleaner. The lavender oil, like tea tree oil, has antibacterial and antifungal properties as well and pleasantly scents your home naturally.