What you can do with your dog’s fur
Don’t throw away your dog’s hair just yet. Here are some unexpected yet useful ways to use it around the house.
Problem Solved, USA TODAY
As pet owners, we love our pets but hate their excessive shedding. Depending on the time of year, fur flies off at the gentlest of pats, and it manages to colonize underneath the couch and weave itself into the fabric of your clothing. No amount of vacuuming and brushing is a match for the almighty dog fur!
Whether you consider the fur a huge annoyance or sprinkles of love, there are some ways to repurpose your pet’s fur for the greater good. While there’s no way to guarantee a fur-free home when you have a pet, consider some of these unusual uses for their fur next time you finish brushing them.
Watch this video for things you can do with pet fur instead of throwing it away.
Alternative uses for dog fur
Regular brushing helps your pet’s coat stay soft and untangled. It’s also the easiest way to get rid of the excess fur that will eventually find its way onto your couch. There’s a reason it’s called fur-niture, right?
Next time you find yourself with a mound of shedded fur, give it to the birds as they can use it for building a nest. You can put tufts of discarded fur in bushes, on a fence, in a cage or in a bag so it’s easy for the birds to find and take.
You can use pet fur in a few different ways in your garden. In some cases, the scent of a dog is enough to make animals, like rabbits, hesitant to visit your garden and snack on your plants. Stuffing fur into an old burlap sack or nylon stocking can be used to create a barrier on the edge of your garden.
Putting loose fur at the base of your plants can protect against smaller critters, like slugs. And fur can be buried to provide extra nutrients to the soil and surrounding plants. Another alternative is to add it to your compost.
If your pup is fond of ripping open toys and removing the stuffing, use some of their fur to re-stuff the toy. You can also do this with pet beds that have gotten a little flat.
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Hair donation
Did you know hair, both human and animal, can be donated? While you can’t donate pet fur to create wigs like you can with human hair, it can be donated to help the environment.
Pet fur, along with human hair, fleece and even laundry lint, can be donated to organizations like Matter of Trust and used to clean up waterways and oil spills.
