Last updated on April 6th, 2021
If you’re a pet-parent, then in all likelihood, you love your pets, as much as your own children. But there are a few key differences that you’ll need to keep in mind.
Believe it or not, pets’ bowls are the fourth dirtiest things in your house. Not very far behind your toilet seat. And would you feed your fur-babies on something almost as dirty as the toilet seat? No, right?
Why Clean Them So Often?
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There’s an entire army of germs that camps in your pets’ bowls, at any given time. Not only are these from their leftover food, but many of them also belong inside your pets’ mouth and saliva, and get transferred to the bowls during mealtimes. And given the moist environment in the bowls, they become the perfect hotbed for bacterial growth.
So, it might be time that we stopped giving their bowls the usual perfunctory rinse, and wait for them to get visibly grubby, to bring them anywhere near antibacterial cleaners. Many of us seem to think that since dogs dip their snouts in so many dirty things, a not-so-pristine bowl shouldn’t be a big deal.
But think about this. Would you leave your kids dirty lunch plates out for 12 hours and reuse them for dinner?
What If Your Pet Has Only Dry Food And Water?
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Even if your pet gets fed dry dog food, and you feel that the bowl is more-or-less clean as it’s dry food that you’re serving, you can’t be farter from the truth. You will need to wash it every day. And the same applies to their water bowls as well.
What Kind Of Bowls Are The Best?
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The best bowl to use, is a stainless steel one. It’s a bad idea to use plastic ones, which can play host to tons of bacteria, even on minor scratches on their surface. Ceramic ones, however, are okay to use, as long as they don’t have any cracks.
How Much And How Often To Clean?
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You will need to wash your pets’ bowls in hot soapy water every single day, and your sink needs to be disinfected (just a quick wipe with a disinfectant wipe) after you’ve washed your pet’s bowls in it. You can then let the bowls air dry. Using towels will only encourage cross-contamination.
And once a week, you will need to deep clean them. You can use ¼ cup of liquid bleach diluted with about 3 litres of water and soak all bowls in it for 10 minutes.
And if you serve raw meat to your pets, you’ll need to sanitize their bowls this way, after every meal. And not just the bowls, but your countertop, the cutting boards and utensils too.
What About Your Hands After Handling The Bowls?
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Every time you handle your pet’s food and water bowl, you’re exposing yourself to a host of bacteria, which are especially harmful for young kids and the elderly and people with a weak immunity. Which is why its imperative that you wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds whenever you handle their food or their bowls. Well, whoever said parenting was an easy job!
