Since school has begun, I have even less time and energy for something like housecleaning. And sharing a house with six furry critters only compounds the problem.

I hire a lady once a month to clean for me. She is extremely efficient and thorough, but once a month isn't really enough to keep the homestead as spic-and-span clean as I like for it to be. However, I am stretching my budget beyond its limit to afford even that.

Consequently, I have learned a few shortcuts for between Tisha's monthly visits. Many of these methods were highlighted in an e-mail I received from Dr. Jon, a vet who sends out his daily advice column through the sponsorship of PetPlace.com.

Here was his e-mail with a few comments from me, too!

When you own a cat, keeping the house clean is never easy. From all that shedding to hairballs and those occasional "accidents" every day can be a real challenge.

And the more pets you have, the more challenging the task becomes. So here are a few quick and easy tips that can help keep your house clean:

1. Avoid white furniture and accents. That goes for walls, rugs, couches and pillows. Outside cats and indoor/outdoor cats get dirty. And all cats shed. Add to that the occasional hairball or "accident" and, well, it's a bad combination all around for white furniture and accents. Continuous contact between your pet and your house will destroy these items quickly, so consider darker tones. [Vikki's Note: I knew better, but I fell in love with a *big* sunflower rug that I bought for the living room ~ the problem being that the background is *beige.* *HUGE* mistake. All my kitties but Trey have some black on them, and that fur accumulates on the rug and sticks there like glue. Only my Oreck has enough suction to pull it up, and because of my back problems, I'm not supposed to vacuum with anything but my little cordless vac. So I have to wait for Tisha ~ or run the Oreck myself and then hit the Vicodin bottle. Occasional barfy messes on this rug are that much harder to clean, too. For any kind of stain, I highly recommend OxiClean Stain Remover, found with laundry products. If OxiClean won't eradicate the stain, nothing will!]

2. Get yourself some throw rugs, pillows and furniture throws to use around the house. They're decorative and can hide problem stains. [Vikki's Note: Yep, I'm all about hiding those stains when the OxiClean is overmatched!]

3. Keep closet doors closed. Cats love to hide and nap in closets, which also means that they shed in your closets. And if they happen to have an "accident" in the closet, it may be a while before you realize it. That makes clean-up even more of an issue. [Vikki's Note: You may have to be creative if you have louvered doors as I do. My kitties can paw them open. So I installed latches on some, and put heavy, decorative doorstops in front of others.]

4. Spot clean messes quickly. Take a few minutes each day before you leave the house and before you head to bed to remove pet hairs and stains that may have collected throughout the day. I strongly suggest investing in the Swiffer Sweeper for this. It's great for quick clean-ups. This 2-In-1 Swiffer allows you to sweep and mop at the same time, cutting your cleaning time in half. It picks up 50% more dirt and hair than a broom and removes everything from dried food, vomit and pet fur to paw prints on virtually any surface in your home. So not only is it quicker, it also works better than traditional sweeping and mopping! If you own a cat, you really should own a Swiffer. This is a pet owner must-have!

Check out the Swiffer Sweeper. [Vikki's Note: As soon as I get past some financial obligations, I'll give the Swiffer Sweeper a try on that living room rug and get back to you with the results. By the way, one of these financial obligations happens October 1 when Deuce and Trey have their little operations on their doodles. Please keep us in your good thoughts! Thanks! And as Dr. Jon says...]

Happy Cleaning!

Until next time,
Dr. Jon
And Vikki, Too! :)

[Photo courtesy of Somerville Free Classifieds. Yes, I know the kitty isn't cleaning, but she is the photo for a housecleaning ad. Besides, she was too darn cute to resist!]