Keeping Your Pets Comfortable in a Clean Workplace

During the COVID lockdowns across the country, people leaned more on their pets as a source of camaraderie. Many people even bought pets; in the United States, households with pets went from 67% up to about 70%.

Now that most of the United States has lifted COVID restrictions and more people are working outside of their homes, people are finding it hard to separate from their pets. In order to soften the post-lockdown transition to the workplace, about 50% of employers said they are planning to make their workplaces pet-friendly.

As cuddly and morale-boosting as pets are, though, they will leave a mess in their wake if you don’t monitor them. And the one thing you don’t have at your workplace is time.

Last week, we talked about keeping your space clean while having a pet. The tips I gave you in that article apply to both home and work spaces. However, you’re dealing with lots of different populations in a workplace, and with more frequency throughout the day. I’ll give you some specific tips to clean your workplace so you, your co-workers, and your pets can co-exist comfortably and happily.

✹ Lay down the law.
Unchecked pets will run rampant. If their carers (your co-workers/employees) don’t have any set of cleaning rules to abide by, cleaning your workplace won’t be workable. Set a list of clear ground rules for having a pet in your workplace — i.e., what kinds of pets you will/will not allow, when walks are scheduled, things like that. Put the rules on signs and hang them in your workplace as a constant reminder.

Be firm in your rules for pet cleanliness! Amazon and other big employers write the rules into their contracts. That makes them easier to enforce, with clear-cut consequences there for the pets’ carers to see.

✹ Make cleaning up after pets accessible to their carers.
As we discussed last week, you will have to be ready for the filthy surprises pets can leave behind. At a pet-friendly workplace, there will be any amount of pets leaving messes around. It’s incumbent upon their carers to clean up their messes as quickly as possible, and that means it’s incumbent upon the employer to make sure the carers have the things to do the cleaning.

Put waste removal bags near pet-frequented areas in your workplace. Leave a spray bottle filled with a pet-safe, non-toxic cleaner (or a vinegar solution — remember: you’re not just dealing with pets’ sensitivities, you also have to keep your co-workers/employees/clients’ sensitivities in mind) close to them. And keep that spray bottle filled up at least to the halfway point!

✹ Keep some areas off-limits to pets.
Let's be real: you can’t control where your pets will go all the time. You can, however, steer them to and away from certain places. They need exercise and socialization skills, so areas for them to do those things will be necessary, perhaps with pet toys in a box. Because you’re dealing with people who may have pet dander allergies, you cannot allow pets to stay on the counters in break rooms or other communal rooms. Keep the doors to these rooms closed or put signs at the entry points.

And, if you can, don’t carpet the areas where you allow pets.

✹ Have the right equipment…
...Because you’re going to need it to get up all that fur and those pet stains! As a pre-emptive strike, we at Andy’s Quality Cleaning like to use a rolo to clean up stray pet hairs. For bigger workplaces with more pets, you may need a good vacuum. You will certainly need a spot cleaner, and you will have to make sure it smells fresh (and tolerable to people with a sensitive sense of smell) in your workplace. 

✹ Contact a cleaning crew!
This is a biggie.

It has been shown that pets improve workplace morale and productivity, but cleaning up after them can make you feel like the morale and production of your workplace is declining. After all, you and your employees/co-workers don’t have time to chase your pets around all day, even if you wish you could. Hire a cleaning service and make sure they know your pet-friendly policies.

I’m not only saying that because we are a cleaning service. But Andy’s Quality Cleaning will create a thorough cleaning routine for your workplace. We know the importance of having pets in the workplace, and we want to keep your workplace at its best for everyone. Contact us today!