If you need a reason to declutter your home this summer, look no further than your pets. However, organizing a home can be a bit of a challenge, especially when you need to consider everyone who lives in your space. Between kids’ toys, kitchen supplies, linens, out-of-season accessories and your pets’ needs, organization may seem overwhelming and out of reach. In order to help you out, we’ve compiled a list of ways you can get organized with your furry friends in mind.
What Is Your Pet Like?
Some pups are lively and energetic, snooping in all crooks and crevices of your home. Other animals are timid and shy, and prefer lounging on the sofa or an area rug. Still others are adventurous, scaling curtains and cubbies to reach the tip-top of just about anywhere. By determining what your pet’s personality is like, you can make better judgment calls about what type of home organization system you need.
For instance, low-key animals are less likely to attempt to climb into open containers and bins. With them, you can use organization systems like baskets or open cubbies that sit on the ground and don’t need lids or secured mechanisms. But if your pet likes to climb and explore, we suggest keeping things out of sight in storage bins locked inside closets or tucked away where he or she wouldn’t think to look.
Toss, Keep or Donate
Before you start arranging your household items into their allotted storage bins, consider decluttering. For many pet owners, areas like laundry rooms and garages pose the biggest danger to animals, as they often contain cleaners, solvents and tools not meant to be chewed on or played with. For the safety of your pets and your own peace of mind, get rid of supplies and broken or expired products that could potentially be dangerous to your pets. After you’ve sifted through your things, keep any remaining harmful items as far out of reach as possible using secure storage bins made of durable materials. Also be sure to toss or give away items that you and your pet don’t need anymore, like small collars, expired pet food, old scratching posts, pet carriers and beds. While they might have once been essential your younger pet’s needs, they are now taking up space and could be used by someone else’s furry friend!
Label and List
Like with children, pets require care and keeping of their spaces, toys, food and medical needs. This means you should secure an area purely for your pets’ things. From leashes and collars to medicine and vaccination lists, storage systems are hugely helpful and can help you keep track of your daily activities, like walking, grooming and, of course, playing. By keeping important papers sorted in a home filing system and your pet’s favorite toys and playthings in labeled cubbies, you’ll be less likely to forget his upcoming vet appointment or misplace her leash.
While organizing isn’t the most exciting item to cross off of a to-do list, it is key for creating a happy and healthy environment for you and your pet. How do you organize with your furry friend in mind?
