How To Pick The Best Vacuum Cleaner For Dog Hair

Despite the joy they bring to our lives, dogs can make it difficult to keep a home clean – especially if your pet sheds a lot.

While eliminating pet hair can sometimes seem like a losing battle, the key is to choose a vacuum cleaner that can handle the dog hair.

You’ll never get rid of all hair, but an efficient vacuum makes it much easier to keep it to a manageable level.

To help you choose the right model, here are the top things to consider when shopping for the best vacuum for dog hair.

Type of Vacuum Cleaner

There are several types of vacuum cleaners on the market, each with strengths and weaknesses. Before you pick one, it’s important to consider factors like:

• The amount of fur your dog sheds
• The amount of space to clean
• The location of the fur

Upright Vacuum Cleaners

Upright vacuum cleaners suit homes with large areas of carpet or hard floors. They are great for quickly cleaning big rooms, but struggle more in tight spaces and are often lacking mobility.

The great thing about uprights is that they typically have a powered brush bar in the floorhead. These rotating bars are effective at pulling hair out of carpet fibres.

Canister Vacuums

Canister vacuums are easier to manoeuvre than upright models, as the floorhead is attached via a flexible hose to the main body. This means you don’t need to push the entire vacuum around when cleaning.

They also have large capacities, so you don’t need to empty them as often.

The downside to canister vacuums is that the floorheads often don’t have a powered brush bar. The best models still generate enough suction to pull out most hair from carpets though.

Handheld Vacuums

These models can be an excellent choice for removing dog hair on pet beds, car interiors, stairs, and other awkward locations.

That said, they aren’t as powerful as full-size models. Handheld vacuums will struggle to remove dog fur embedded deeply in carpets, so they are really only suitable for small jobs.

Cordless Stick Vacuum

Cordless vacuums have become more common in recent years, due to their ease of use and lightweight designs.

While the best cordless vacuums can do a good job of removing pet hair, these models often have small dust capacities. You’ll need to empty them frequently – especially if you have a large dog who sheds a lot.

Motorised Pet Tool

It’s vital to choose a vacuum cleaner with a motorised pet tool.

These are smaller accessories with a powered brush bar that are great for removing hair from places that the main floorhead can’t reach.

Without a miniature-powered tool, it can be very difficult to remove hair from sofas, curtains, and car seats.

Other tools can also be useful. Mattress attachments, for example, are great if your dog is allowed onto your bed.

Flexible crevice tools can also be helpful for cleaning under car seats and in other awkward locations.

HEPA Filters

A vacuum cleaner that removes dog hair should have an efficient filter. A low-grade filter can release allergens, such as pet dander, into the air and significantly affect your indoor air quality.

It’s advisable to purchase vacuums that contain HEPA filters. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, these filters remove about 99.97% of particulates from polluted air.

Anything greater than 0.3 nanometres can’t escape through these filters.

HEPA filters won’t release dog hair, dander, and other microscopic allergens into your living space. If you’re allergic to pets, consider cleaning your home using a HEPA-fitted vacuum.

Bagged vs. Bagless Vacuums

The method you use to dispose of dog hair should influence your choice of a vacuum cleaner.

Most modern vacuums are bagless (with notable exceptions), meaning they dispose of waste directly from the machine. Below are some of the most common benefits of bagless vacuums.

• Less expensive - you don’t need to purchase replacement bags repeatedly.
• Eco-friendly - you don’t have to deal with bags full of dog hair and dander.
• Easy to tell when to empty – bagless vacuums have clear chambers, making it easy to see whether it’s full.

While bagless vacuum cleaners are popular among dog owners, they have some downsides. Here are some of the reasons not to use them.

• More exposure to pet hair and allergens – a bagless vacuum cleaner will expose you to dog hair and allergens when emptying the chamber.
• Manual maintenance – you must empty the bin and clean the filters more often, as bagless models have smaller dust capacities.

For these reasons, we recommend a bagged vacuum for people with allergies, as they ensure that dander stays trapped when emptying.

Bagged models are also a great choice for bigger homes. But if you need convenience, go for a bagless model.

Strong Suction

Another vital element you should check in a vacuum cleaner is the suction power. A vacuum with high suction power will remove stubborn dog hair from your floor effortlessly.

Suction power can either be listed in Watts, Air Watts, Amps, or Cubic Feet per Minute (CFM). The higher the CFM (50-100), the more suction your vacuum will have.

Unfortunately, many vacuum manufacturers don’t provide their vacuum’s suction power. You may need to rely on reviews instead.

Vacuum Capacity

Consider getting a vacuum cleaner with a large dust capacity. This is especially important if you have a dog breed that sheds a lot or a big home to clean.

The smallest handheld models can hold as little as 0.1 litres of dust before needing to be emptied.

In contrast, the largest bagged models can hold over 5 litres of dirt and hair, meaning you’ll need to empty them much less frequently.

Summary: Choosing The Best Vacuum For Dog Hair

An effective pet vacuum is vital for any dog owner. Unfortunately, many vacuums struggle to pick up hair from carpets and hard floors.

For this reason, make sure you consider the points above when choosing.

By getting a vacuum with strong suction, a pet tool, a large capacity and a HEPA filter, you’ll find it much easier to keep your home as hair-free as possible.

K9 Magazine Reviews Of The Best Vacuum Cleaners For Dog Owners

Our vacuum cleaner reviews put the best vacuum cleaner brands through their paces in multi-pet-owning homes.

SEBO Felix Pet Vacuum Cleaner

The SEBO Felix Pet ePower is an updated version of the German company's tried and tested vacuum cleaner format that is designed specifically for dogs.

The SEBO Felix Pet has received glowing praise from users who have an existing affinity for the SEBO brand and style, but how will it fare in the hands of someone who hasn't owned or even operated a SEBO vacuum cleaner before?

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The Shark Anti Hair Wrap Cordless Vacuum Cleaner provided us with a great opportunity to make a direct comparison with its competition in the class of cordless vacuum cleaners that are specifically designed with pet hair in mind.

This particular vacuum is the quickest from out-of-the-box to in-use we've ever tested. Simple as that.

The build quality is such that all the components fit together with a satisfying 'clunk' sound. Not possible to make any mistakes. Unpacked, put together and in use all under 6 minutes. It really couldn't be any simpler.

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Vax ONEPWR Blade 4 Pet Cordless Vacuum Cleaner

 

The Vax ONEPWR Blade 4 Pet Cordless vacuum cleaner is lightweight but packs a punch. Incredibly easy to set up with a functional battery life that won't leave you racing around your home trying to get finished before the power dies.

Simple and effective; the Vax ONEPWR Blade 4 Pet Cordless is an ideal choice for dog owners who prefer convenience but also need the horsepower to actually deliver a clean that some other cordless vacuums simply can't match.

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The Greenworks cordless stick vacuum provides us with an opportunity to test a vacuum cleaner brand that we have not previously encountered here at K9 Magazine.

The cleaning abilities of the Greenworks stick vacuum are equally robust. As ever, with a brand new vacuum, we're getting to experience the cleaner at its best.

As a handheld, the Greenworks 24v offers the extra power boost if you need it to really take care of the hard-to-reach crevices where pet hair loves to lurk.

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VAX SpotWash Home Pet-Design

 

The Vax SpotWash is powered by a powerful 360-watt motor that is both energy efficient and effective. The motor produces a strong suction that is able to remove stains from carpets, upholstery and other fabrics quickly and efficiently.

The SpotWash comes with a range of useful accessories, allowing you to target your cleaning needs for different surfaces.

The SpotWash also includes a two-tank system, which means that you can clean using two different cleaning solutions and that dirty water can be quickly removed. This is another advantage over a full-sized carpet cleaner.

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The iRobot Roomba j7 + promises a world where the daily grind of vacuuming is handed over to a smart vacuum cleaner who'll make your life easier and your home cleaner.

iRobot has over 30 years of robotics expertise and innovation with over 30 million home robots sold worldwide. Whether you choose Roomba, Braava or both - your floors get the specialized care they need.

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The VAX Blade 5 Dual Pet & Car cordless vacuum maintains the rigorously high standards, simplicity and effectiveness we've come to know and love from VAX range of cleaning products.

It's lightweight and simple to use and it gets the job done with plenty of battery life to spare.

The VAX Blade 5 Dual Pet & Car cordless vacuum is a powerful and versatile vacuum cleaner that offers a lot of features in a relatively small package.

This vacuum can be used for both home and car use, which makes it a great choice for those who need a versatile and powerful vacuum cleaner.

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