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How to remove pet hair from your sofa

Our pets are part of the family, which means it’s not uncommon for them to clamber up beside you while you’re watching the TV or settle down on your knee for a snooze (even though they have their own bed to lie in!)

Written by: Paul O'Reilly

14th January 2022

You’re probably familiar with the sight of cat or dog hair on your furniture.

As much as we love our pets, keeping your chairs, sofas, footstools, cushions, throws and other items fur-free is a constant battle.

But here’s the thing….there are some tricks to keeping on top of the pet hair, several of which I’ve shared in this article.

How do I get pet hair off my sofa?

Keeping on top of the amount of fur left on your sofa from pets can sometimes feel like a full time job.

However, if you de-fur on a regular basis, it should be less of a task. I'll share some guidance on how to remove pet hair later on in this article.

How do you keep pet hair out of fabric?

It’s virtually impossible to prevent cat and dog hair from sticking to your furniture fabric and your clothes.

Covering your sofa or other furniture with throws is a quick and easy way of protecting them from fur (however, you will still need to de-fur your throws from time-to-time!)

But if you really don’t want any fur whatsoever on your sofa, make the space a pet-free zone or provide a pet bed or sofa especially for your dog or cat, such as our Hoxton velvet dog sofa.

What’s the best sofa material when you have pets?

When it comes to choosing the best material for your sofa, there are many pet-friendly options.

Leather is a great choice because there’s no weave for fur to stick to and get embedded into. It’s also much easier to wipe dirty paw prints off leather sofas and other everyday marks.

And while some leathers may be prone to getting scratched and pricked by sharp claws, these surface scratches can be treated with specialist leather sofa care kits, designed to help maintain your leather sofa.

Other pet-friendly material choices include woven fabrics and synthetic materials, such as nylon, which are easy to clean, and low-pile material such as velvet, which tends to be less tempting to scratch.

A low-pile fabric is also good for keeping smells at bay as they don't trap odours like other materials.

How do I keep pet hair off my sofa?

While it’s impossible to completely rid your furniture of pet hair, there are certain hacks you can try to help make the whole process that bit easier.

10 top tips for removing pet hair from your sofa

1. Give it a vacuum

Invest in a vacuum that’s specifically designed to suck up pet fur and use the attachments to get into all the crevices where fur likes to gather. Go backwards and forwards in different directions to loosen and capture all of those stubborn hairs. Top tip: lightly spray some hairspray over your sofa first, it makes the fur thicker and easier to vacuum.

2. Rub it with a rubber glove

Pop on a rubber glove, slightly dampen it with water and then rub it over the surface of your sofa. It may not be as thorough as a hoover, but you’ll be amazed at how much fur you do pick up.

3. Spritz it with a fabric softener

Grab a bottle of liquid fabric softener and make a mixture of equal parts softener and water in a spray bottle. Lightly spray the solution over your sofa. Then use a cloth to wipe up the pet hair.

4. Wipe it with tumble dryer sheets

Grab a sheet and rub it over your sofa; you’ll soon see the hairs on it. As soon as it’s full of fur, bin it and use a new sheet. It’s tricky to get the hairs out of the sheets, so it’s best to bin them as you go along.

5. Go over it with a lint roller

Run it over your sofa and rip off the sections that get clogged with hair, just as you would with your clothes. Lint rollers tend to be more effective at getting rid of fur on larger surfaces (e.g. your seat cushions and back of your sofa) because of their chunky design.

6. Run some tape over it

Any type of sticky tape will do however, the wider the strips, the quicker you’ll be able to defuzz. We recommend using parcel or duct tape. Simply turn the tape back on itself and then dab it all over your sofa. You will need to keep stopping to renew the tape strip.

7. Use a damp sponge

Not too dissimilar to the rubber glove trick, grab a damp sponge (not wet) and then rub it over your sofa in different directions. The trick is to make sure you get enough water on your sponge to make it damp and not drench your sofa.

8. Slide a pumice stone over it

The abrasive surface acts like a magnet, picking up fur as you go along. Top tip: stick to moving it in one direction and don’t apply too much pressure to avoid damaging the material.

9. Run a sports sock over it

Slightly dampen it, turn it inside out and then put it over your hand. Sports socks work better than normal socks because they’re thicker. Make sure you go easy on the water though; you don’t want to end up with a soggy sofa!

10. Use a rubber squeegee

You may have gathered by now that rubber and water are the perfect combination for getting rid of pet hair from fabric. If you haven’t got some spare rubber gloves, but you have got a rubber squeegee, give it a go, you’ll be pleasantly surprised!

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Written by: Paul O'Reilly

Upholstery Service Manager

at ScS

14th January 2022

With over 30 years of experience working within Upholstery and nearly 20 years of service at ScS, Paul knows a thing or two about sofas. Along the way, Paul has trained in all areas of upholstery, modern and traditional, antiques and factory-produced pieces, creating, and restoring. Paul is passionate about making sure upholstery is properly cared for. His top tip is to care for the cushions on your sofa like you would do your pillows on the bed; dress them, plump them, smooth them and turn them. Spending just 5 minutes a day can keep you sofa looking its best.