Eliminate Cat Pee Smell from Clothes & Bedding: A Step-by-Step Guide

Cats sometimes have accidents, leaving urine on your clothes or bedding, which can have a very strong odor, especially once it dries. Fortunately, cat urine and its odors can be removed from any washable fabric, and these methods work for other types of urine too. After addressing the immediate issue, consider if there are underlying behavioral or health problems causing your cat to urinate on laundry.

To completely remove the cat urine smell from clothes, follow three steps: pretreat the urine-soaked fabric, wash the garment in vinegar, then wash it again with an enzyme-based detergent. These supplies are common household items. Here’s how to eliminate urine odor from clothing.

Pretreating

Throwing urine-stained clothing or fabrics directly into the washing machine isn’t a good idea since cat urine has a way of setting in its odors. If added to a general laundry load, you might even find that the urine-stained items contaminate an entire load of laundry with its scent. It’s best to pretreat the urine first before moving to the next step.

1. Rinse out the spot with clean, cool water. Blot the stained area dry with paper towels. Do not scrub at the stain, since this can drive it deeper into the fabric. Your goal here is to remove as much of the urine as possible before moving to the cleaning stages.

2. Fill a sink with water and add a half-cup of oxygen bleach, such as Oxiclean. Do not use traditional chlorine bleach, as this can damage clothing.1 Mix the oxygen bleach thoroughly into the water, then soak the urine-stained items in the water for one to four hours.

Vinegar Wash

For the best results, use a two-part cleaning process to remove urine stains and odor. The first part of this process is a vinegar wash.

1. Mix one cup of white vinegar with one cup of water (one to one). Coat the urine-stained item with this solution and allow it to sit for a few minutes.

2. Cover the stained area with baking soda, if you wish. Baking soda will work along with vinegar to absorb and neutralize odor.

3. Wash the urine-stained items in a washing machine set on cold or lukewarm water. Do not add laundry detergent for this washing. Do not use warm or hot water, as this can set in the stain and odor.

4. Air-dry the urine-stained items. This can take a full 24 hours if you are drying indoors. Do not use a clothes dryer, because any heat can serve to set in the odor permanently.3

Laundering

By now, a good deal of the stain and odor has been removed, and you can move to traditional washing.

1. Wash the urine-stained items in cool water using an enzyme-based detergent. Enzyme-based detergents break down organic stains, such as cat urine. Check detergent labels for enzyme content; many cold-water detergents include them.

2. Air-dry the items once again. Once they are fully dry, smell the items carefully for any lingering odors. If the urine has fully dried, you may need to repeat the final laundering step.

Consider Your Cat’s Health

To avoid future incidents, you must address the problem with your cat. When cats urinate in places other than the litter box, it very often indicates a health or behavioral issue.

Begin by taking your cat to the vet. Aside from a dirty litter box, a urinary tract problem is the most common reason for litter box avoidance.4 You should rule out a health problem first. If your vet rules out a medical cause, then you will need to address the behavioral reasons for your cat’s inappropriate urination.

Still Smell Cat Urine?

If your laundry has come out smelling fresh, but you still detect the lingering odor of cat urine in your home, you’ll need to perform some detective work. It’s possible the pet has marked floors, furniture, or other areas in your home.

Arm yourself with a urine detector or blacklight. Most blacklights work better in complete darkness, so work cautiously. Use the light to scan walls, floors, baseboards, furniture, and any other surfaces. Hold the light close to the surface for best results—urine stains will glow fluorescent white. Use chalk or sticky note paper to mark the areas where the blacklight reveals stains.

Once you’ve identified the soiled areas, use an odor-removal product to clean the area. After thoroughly cleaning, you can enjoy a freshly scented home once more.