How to Clean Dog Poop From a Shag Rug

The dog doesn’t mean to poop on the green shag rug. Really. Even if your canine is trained to do his business outside, accidents happen. Cleaning dog poop off a shag rug is neither fun nor pretty. However, unless you’re willing to chuck the rug, it’s something that needs to be done.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Paper towels
• Damp rag
• Neutralizer such as Nature’s Miracle

1. Scoop up any pieces that can be picked up with a paper towel. Pull off any obvious clumps. Throw them away in a sealed, plastic sandwich bag. Take out the trash immediately or, even better, toss the poop bag into a garbage can outside your home.

2. Scrub the spots with a damp rag, rinsing often while pulling upwards on the carpet fibers to dislodge any material that clings.

3. Break out the neutralizer. Saturate the offensive areas. Nature’s Miracle brand doubles as a stain remover, but there are many others on the market you may wish to try. Make sure it’s an odor neutralizer and not simply an odor mask.

4. Scrub once again, making sure the neutralizer gets deep down into every carpet fiber that may have been affected. You will want to go in different directions so your shag doesn’t sag.

5. Let dry completely, usually for 10 hours or so. Vacuum to revitalize the rug’s pile and insure the mess is gone.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep an odor neutralizer in stock if you own pets.
• If the dog poops on a lightly colored rug, you may need to add an additional stain-remover step.
• Don't ignore this behavior. If the dog does it continually, find out what's bothering him emotionally or take him to the vet for a check up.
• Don’t forget how much you love your dog, even as the odor wafts upwards during your scrubbing, and the rug looks ruined.