Pet Storage: Your Complete Guide
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Pet storage isn’t a problem anymore. Learn how to organize all your pet supplies in this simple guide.
Keeping your pet’s things organized is incredibly important. Storing food correctly will minimize pests. Maintaining organized pet storage areas for your pet will help you find what you need without any searching.
Wondering where to begin? Get our FREE guide, The 30-Minute Organizing Secret, and discover easy ways to overcome the chaos of clutter – even with kids at home!
Pet Storage Solutions
You love your pet, so let’s look at some no-fail ways to keep your pet’s things tidy and organized.
Table of contents
- Dry Pet Food and Treat Storage
- Wet Pet Food Storage
- Storage Ideas for Dog Clothes
- How to Store Pet Toys
- Where Should Pets Sleep
- Dog Leash Storage
- Pet Grooming Supplies Storage
- How to Store Important Papers
- How to Keep Your Home Clean and Odor-Free With Pets
Dry Pet Food and Treat Storage
The first thing we will look at is how to store dry pet food and treats. The biggest problem with dry pet food is how quickly it can attract pests like bugs. Another common problem with just leaving the bag open? Your sweet pet will try to get into the bag.
So how do you store food?
The most obvious way is in a plastic tub with a lid. Make sure the lid creates an air-tight seal and cannot be opened by your pet.
Other creative ideas include:
- Store Treats in Mason Jars – You can even create your own lids.
- Repurpose Trash Cans – This is a great idea if you have a cabinet that you can store your trash can inside. A trash bin without a lid, or with a loose lid, will be an open invitation to your pet.
- Reuse Large Popcorn Tins – Tidy Mom has a tutorial. Paint it to match your decor.
- Personalized Bags – If you have multiple pets that required different foods, making personalized bags is an excellent idea. This helps anyone that might feed your pet. You can either buy some on Etsy or make your own.
- Use Drawer Organizers – This tip is best for people that live in areas without bugs. You can use a drawer organizer to store your pet’s food. It isn’t airtight, so it could attract pests, but the personalization is adorable.
Wet Pet Food Storage
As much as dry pet food attracts pests, wet pet food is worse. If you live in an area that has high humidity, be very careful with your pet’s food dish and food containers.
According to Hill’s Pet, “your pet’s bowl should be emptied of moist or canned food not eaten by your cat or dog within 4 hours if the ambient temperature is above 50°F.”
Opened wet pet food cans should be stored in the refrigerator. You can store pet food in any of these ways:
- Use a can-topper – these fit snuggly over the can to keep out air. Plus the lid traps odors from the pet food in.
- Plastic wrap – just make sure the plastic wrap fits snugly around the can.
- In a plastic container with a lid – this will mean you have more dishes to wash, but the lid keeps the pet food fresher.
- In a zip-top plastic bag – put the can inside a zippered plastic bag when you store it in the refrigerator.
How do you store all the cans of pet food so they aren’t just taking over your pantry?
There are lots of products on the market that are designed to help you keep your canned cat or dog food organized.
If you store the cans of food in your pantry, look for something that offers vertical storage. This will help you store more cans in a small area.
You can also buy flat trays for organizing cans of food and place the trays in a drawer.
On a budget? Make your own drawer organizer out of foam board or store cans of food in magazine containers.
Storage Ideas for Dog Clothes
Whether you buy Halloween costumes, winter coats, or fun holiday-themed outfits, collections of dog clothes can easily get out of control.
The best way to manage your pet’s clothes is to set a personal limit on how much you own. Either keep a certain-sized bin dedicated to clothes or set a numerical limit (3 outfits per season, for example). Then, when you go beyond that limit, give away some of the older clothes.
Here are some more creative ways to store your pet’s clothes.
Create A Dog Clothes Closet
If you have lots of clothes that you want to store, one of the best ways is to dedicate some space in a coat closet for them. Hang up dog coats on hangers and keep the leashes nearby so you can find them when you need them.
Label a Storage Organizer Bag
If you have a large collection of dog clothes, it might helpful to dedicate a storage organizer bag to each season and label the bag with the name.
- Winter
- Christmas
- Spring
- Summer
- Independence Day
If you need to, you can store the storage bags in a closet or under your bed and only keep out the current season’s clothes.
Use Organizers Inside Furniture Storage
Finally, you can use furniture that has storage abilities to organize your pet’s clothes.
For example, use a hollow ottoman to store your dog’s coats and costumes. If you want to keep the furniture storage organized, create DIY organizers out of foam board.
Measure the height, cut out some foam board pieces, and glue them to a poster board that you will lay on the bottom of the drawer or piece of furniture.
How to Store Pet Toys
Perhaps the one thing that becomes the most out of control are all the pet toys. It makes sense – they play with them and drag them all over the house.
So how do you keep pet toys cleaned up and organized?
Personalized Crates
Search Etsy and you’ll find lots of artists that create personalized boxes and crates for all your pet’s things. These look beautiful and fit naturally in your living room or bedroom.
DIY Toy Crates
Another idea is to make your own personalized crates. All you need is either paint and stencils or a vinyl printer like a Silhouette Cameo and a wooden crate. You can find wooden crates at most craft stores. A Home to Grow Old In has a great tutorial showing just how easy they can be to make.
The Problem With Cat Toy Storage
When it comes to cat toy storage, you might want to choose a bin that has a lid. Because if you choose any kind of basket without a lid, your cat will sit in it. All cats do – but isn’t that why we love them?
Where Pets Should Sleep
One thing that will help you keep all your pet’s supplies organized is to establish an area of your home that is dedicated to your pets.
According to the American Kennel Club, letting your pet sleep in your bed or bedroom can lead to worse sleep for you as well as exacerbating allergies.
If possible, create a separate sleeping area for your pet, away from your bed. You can store their toys and other supplies in this room.
But if you enjoy letting your pet sleep in your room, take notice of any issues it might cause and get ahead of them. If they are waking you up, either train them or establish another sleeping area.
Dog Leash Storage
How many times are you searching around the house for your dog’s leash? There’s your dog, barking and excited, and you can’t find the leash.
Here are some creative ways to store dog leashes so you don’t have to experience this problem again.
Make a DIY leash and keys hook. The idea in the picture above is really creative – the beauty of this pet storage solution is the simplicity. There are places for keys, guest’s bags, and dog’s leash.
The best thing about this
Another really trendy look right now is the nail and yarn crafts. All you need to make this is some wood, stain, string, hooks, and some nails.
Pet Grooming Supplies Storage
How many brushes, shampoos, nail clippers, and other grooming supplies does your dog or cat have? Probably enough to need a place to store them.
Where do you keep your pet’s brushes and things?
1. Keep Your Supplies Collection Small
The most important thing to remember with pet storage is to only keep supplies that you use regularly. If you can buy things that have multiple purposes, that’s even better. When you have fewer things to store, you have a cleaner area.
2. Store Them Where You Use Them
Store the brushes in a basket or bin that is next to your comfy chair or wherever you brush your pet the most. When you create storage solutions near the place they are used most, you are setting yourself up for more success. You’ll be more likely to tidy up and keep things put away if you can reach it easily.
3. Use A Portable Rolling Cart
If you don’t have one place that you brush your pet most, consider putting the brushes and products on a rolling cart that you can take with you around your home.
4. Hang Up Your Supplies
If you are short on a cabinet or shelf space, you can always buy a hanging organizer and store pet brushes and shampoos on the back of your bathroom door.
Be creative. Create a caddy or a tote that you can take with you when you leave the house. Whatever idea you create, keep it contained and don’t let your collection grow so large that it inhibits you from finding the tools you need.
How to Store Important Papers on Your Pet
It is incredibly important to keep track of all the records on your pet. You’ll need their health history and licensing information as well as shot records if you ever want to take them to a boarding facility, veterinarian, or groomer.
The Buttoned Up Pet Agenda has forms and folders that will organize every piece of medical information on your pets. It can keep track of up to 2 pets.
You can also create your own system out of a 3-ring binder and some folders. These free printables are beautiful and can help you track allergies and medications with ease.
Keep all your pet’s documents together. If that means storing them in your filing cabinet or in your home management binder, do it. The last thing you want to do is just stuff the loose papers in the bottom of your junk drawer.
How to Keep Your Home Clean and Odor-Free With Pets
There is no denying it – pets have smells. Puppies have accidents. Large dogs have bad breath. And let’s not even mention the cat box.
But there are a few tips that can help you maintain a super clean and odor-free home, even with multiple pets.
1. Keep Your Pet Groomed
It is worth the money to take your pet to the groomers regularly. A clean pet will smell so much better, and so will your home.
If you are on a budget, commit to bathing and grooming your pet regularly. Depending on how much time your pet spends outside, you might have to bathe them more often.
How often should your dog be bathed and groomed? It depends on the breed and how often they get messy outside. You can wash your dog as frequently as every other week. The American Kennel Club has a guide that explains which dogs need groomed more often. Some can go up to a few months without a bath.
2. Clean Up Messes Immediately
It seems so simple because it is. As soon as you see a mess from your dog or cat, clean it up. Letting a mess sit longer will allow the odors to sink into the fabrics and cause your home to smell.
Use the correct cleaner – an enzymatic cleaner is best. It will actually eat away at the waste, including the odors.
3. Clean the Pet Beds
Pet’s beds are a place that odors – including those from your pet’s breath – linger. If you start smelling something that is off, check the pet bedding and consider washing it.
4. Clean the Cat Box Often
How often should you clean the cat box? This depends on how many cats you have and how messy your cat is. Try to clean it out every day or at least every other day.
If the smell is still lingering after you scoop it out, change the litter entirely.
Cat boxes with lids can help cut down on some of that smell. But nothing will kill the odor like simply removing the source of the problem – the dirty litter.
This depends on how much storage space you have. Once a toy is torn to shreds, it’s time to replace it. Don’t keep more toys than you can keep in a few baskets.
Remember, you should only use dog shampoo on dogs. Don’t use human shampoo or body wash. Since you only need to bathe your dog about once a month, keep their baths supplies put away in the bathroom closet or under the sink.
The easiest solution is to give each pet their own basket with their name. If the dogs all share the same toys, keeping them separated might not be a high priority.
Stay Organized With Pets
Pets are members of the family. They provide companionship and friendship. Keep your home clean, organized, and odor-free with these pet storage and organization tips.
You can have a beautifully clean home and have pets! It is possible to have both. It just takes some systems and a bit of time.
Struggling to get motivated? Sign up to get our FREE guide, The 30-Minute Organizing Secret, and discover easy ways to overcome the chaos of clutter – even with kids at home!
More Home Organization Articles
Now that you have some ideas that will help you organize your pets and all their supplies, here are some more home organization articles for other areas of your life.
- Family Organization Guide – Learn how to organize your entire family and all the things that come with it.
- Complete Guide to House Cleaning – Discover hacks and tricks that will make cleaning your entire house a breeze.
- How to Add More Storage to Your Small House – If you live in an apartment or just a small home, these tips are just for you.
