Okay, so yesterday I finally tackled the dog kennel – it was getting pretty ripe, not gonna lie. First things first, I moved the dogs, my two goofy labs, to the backyard. Gotta get them out of the splash zone, you know?
Gathering Supplies
Next, I gathered my cleaning arsenal. I’m a big believer in keeping things simple, so here’s what I used:
- A good, sturdy scrub brush – the one with the long handle, saves my back.
- A bucket – obviously.
- A hose – with a decent nozzle, gotta have some pressure.
- Pet-safe disinfectant – I’m paranoid about germs, but also don’t want to poison my pups. I went with a diluted bleach mixture.
- Rubber gloves – because, ew.
The Cleaning Process
I started by scooping out any, uh, solid waste. Let’s just say there was a lot of that. Then, I hosed the whole kennel down, really getting into the corners. The pressure washer would’ve been nice here, but the hose did the trick.
Next, I mixed the disinfectant in the bucket with warm water, following the instructions on the bottle (super important!). I dumped some of the solution onto the kennel floor and started scrubbing. And scrubbing. And scrubbing some more. My arms were definitely feeling it.
After a thorough scrub-down, I rinsed everything really, really well. You don’t want any disinfectant residue hanging around. I rinsed it until the water ran clear, then rinsed it again for good measure.
Finishing Up
Finally, I let the kennel air dry. Sunshine is a great natural disinfectant, too. Once it was completely dry, I put down some fresh bedding – I use straw, it’s cheap and easy to replace. And that’s it! Clean kennel, happy dogs (and a slightly less smelly backyard for me).
It’s not a glamorous job, but someone’s gotta do it. And honestly, seeing my dogs roll around in their clean space makes it all worthwhile.
