Everyone loves pets: their ability to brighten up a person’s day is unparalleled. Yet for all the joy they’re capable of producing, pets can also cause quite the headache.

Of course, most pet incidents are simply the result of playfulness, but the objects around your home won’t feel any better from that: your carpets and similar cherished surfaces are under constant risk of being permanently ruined due to how joyful your pets are.

Pet damage on carpets: why do we hate it so much?

Pets have an astounding array of ways to damage your carpet: merely relieving themselves will cause a foul smell and a stain that could very likely stick around for a while. Should they really choose to get to work, however, they can make use of their powerful claws and teeth to tear your carpet to shreds and turn it into a withered husk of what it once was.

So, is there even a point to attempting carpet repairs in cases of pet damage? It all depends on the exact incident in question. Depending on the carpet’s colors, a stain could either be invisible or stick out like a sore thumb: likewise, a single scratch is much easier to repair than a complete tear.

If you’re dealing with pet stains and odor, your results will vary based on your response time and the amount of fluid that was released onto the fabric. If you waited long enough for the stain to dry out, it probably isn’t going to go anywhere without professional help and the odor could stay for months.

Start addressing a pet stain by blotting out the affected area to remove excess liquid – blotting instead of wiping will keep the fluid contained instead of letting it spread to clean parts of the fabric. Then, try to apply a cleansing solution depending on the carpet’s materials: a mixture of vinegar, water and sometimes soap is considered the safest bet in these situations. Leave the mixture on the stain, then rinse and observe results – if the stain persists after several DIY treatments, asking a professional cleaner for help might be your only option.

Aside from staining, pet damage can also come in the form of an array of fearsome cuts, tears, rips and other things that leave a carpet worse off. Repairing a carpet from this type of pet damage is problematic because it requires more than just a readiness to clean: it’s hard to hope for good results without a basic understanding of knitting and sewing on your part.

When repairing holes and tears, remember that the repairs are meant to be invisible rather than leave a clear mark – nobody should be able to tell that the carpet was being worked on once the job is finished. If you lack the sewing aptitude and materials necessary to stitch a pet-torn carpet seamlessly, it’s best to have a professional take care of the job instead – when left to work, professional carpet repairmen can have some amazing results on even the most broken-down of carpets.