It was not too long ago when I responded 'bullcrap' when a recent guest began spouting off his batshit crazy opinions.
Bullcrap is quite a problem these days. So is batshit crazy. I do hate crap.
And then there was the discovery of the kittens while leafblowing last weekend, and I now have a new kind of crap problem .
So. I came home and sprayed and scrubbed them outside, using the hose.
They stank.
The next day, I hosed them down, scrubbed them again with a good detergent, and then hosed them once again until nothing remained in the cracks and the crevices of the grippy soles. I left them outside for the day.
This morning, I brought them in to dry completely, setting the them on the heating vent in the bathroom.
When I walked in a few minutes later, the bathroom smelled like catcrap.
I grabbed the shoes and headed for the basement. I tossed them into the washer. I didn't even know if you are supposed to wash them in a machine and at that point, I didn't really care. I washed them in one of those heavily scented laundry detergents.
When I pulled them out, they looked fine, much to my relief. They were expensive shoes by my standards and worse yet, they were just a couple months old.
But in examining them, I noticed that they STILL smelled like cat. Not quite so strongly but definitely.
I tucked two fabric softener sheets inside them and then sprayed them down with carpet odor remover. After a few cautious sniff tests, I once again set them on the vent in the bathroom to dry.
The shoes are now outside and I took an essential oil diffuser into the bathroom.
This stinks.
Clearly cat crap is all invasive. It would be awful to have to chuck them out but if they continue to smell, your hands will pick up the smell each time you put them on or take them off.
ReplyDeleteAfter being scrubbed by hand twice, hosed down three times, and then, in desperation tossed into the washer, ANNNNND sprayed down with carpet deodorizer, after two days outside the smell has pretty much gone away. I was sick to think it might be permanent. Those shoes would have been $#!+ canned.
DeleteMaybe you should try some of that Phoof (?) spray advertised on TV that is supposed to even neutralize skunk 🦨 spray!
ReplyDeleteAfter two days outside airing, I think we've got it taken care of, but have read about Pooph for possible future (gads! I hope not) use.
DeleteWell shit!
ReplyDeleteYep. How I missed that I can't even tell you.
DeleteCat shit. The gift that keeps giving.
ReplyDeleteHoo boy. You certainly have that right.
DeleteI wash my leather shoes in the washer just because they need it(no cat poop) After they finish, I lay them on the side in front of the frig. The warm air will dry them in a few hours as the frig runs.
ReplyDeleteI never knew that you could wash leather shoes. I was afraid to do it, but honestly, I had no idea what else to do. The refrigerator is a good idea though. I'll have to remember that one.
DeleteOh gosh! Oh gosh! I'm sorry, Debby, but you made me laugh. We love Merrells shoes too and have some though they're pretty old. Thank goodness we haven't stepped in any cat poo, but Art did step in dog poo once and without knowing got into the car and started driving. Since I've lost my sense of smell, I couldn't help Art figure out where the smell was coming from. Yup. The shoes. So he had to wash and wash them and thank goodness, it must not have been too bad. He then had to clean the car where he stepped. Sigh... So is dog poo not as bad as cat poo, I wonder?
ReplyDeleteI am going to say two things: First, I have never before envied a person without a sense of smell. And secondly, I suppose to test this, it would require walking through dog doo with one foot and cat poo with the the other. The mystery will have to remain a mystery, because I'm not doing that.
DeleteIt’s ALLLWAAAYS the favorite new shoes, isn’t it?? Murphy catches us coming and going…. As for the cat vs dog stink contest, I call it a tie…. (I once stepped in a HUGE pile of the doggie variety and tracked it unknowingly into a carpeted historical museum…. To this day, I cannot fathom how I didn’t notice it sooner…)
ReplyDeleteI am not a person who spends big on shoes. Really. But in this case, I had. And did I mention they were new? Because they were. My gosh. It was disgusting.
DeleteI will, shamefully, admit that I laughed at the poor carpeted historical museum.
Probably the reason I prefer dogs to cats, is because their s*** is not as smelly. My little cat delivers ready packaged little cigars.
ReplyDeleteIn a litter box too, which makes alk the difference.
DeleteOh dear! It does linger...
ReplyDeleteLike an unwelcome guest.
DeleteIck... soooo not what I what to think about over breakfast this morning .....
ReplyDeleteSorry...
DeleteI guess conditions and parentage are lacking, and nothing is being buried as it should be.
ReplyDeleteNature or nurture...the question is answered. Tbh, I think they believe they are burying it. Unfortunately it was being buried in the leaves, not the soil.
DeleteOMG, I thought it was only ME that detested POOP of any kind! I used to tell my son when he was young, that if he stepped in it, I'd throw his shoes away, and sure enough he did, and I did! I know that it's damn near impossible to get the stank out once it's in. Ugh. Fast forward 20-some years, and I have on a NEW pair of Brooks walking shoes, for which I paid a fortune (and I never pay a fortune for walking shoes) and of course, on a leaf-lined walking path, WHO steps in disguised dog shit?? ME! Between bleach, scrubbing with a toothbrush and swearing, then some Oxy clean, more scrubbing and swearing, I did finally get the smell out, barely. Lesson learned. Wear the "crappy" cheap shoes when out walking on paths, especially in the Fall. Grrrrr. (and bring a clean pair to put on in the car)
ReplyDeleteAt one point when I thought they were clean, I put them on for a short trip. The trip was interrupted by a stop at Family Dollar for a pair of cheap fake crocks. I put the hiking shoes in the shopping bag in the trunk. I noticed when I opened the trunk for groceries yesterday the trunk still smelled. I put the groceries in the back seat. I have a air freshener in my trunk.
DeleteSigh, we can't win!!!
DeleteI actually like the smell of horse poop, and I've been around so much cow poop in my life, it doesn't bother me much. I've often stepped barefoot in cow manure when it was still warm. No big deal. Cat poop, though, is one of the WORST.
ReplyDeletePurrfectly awful.
ReplyDeleteBeen there. Done that. Threw the shoes away.
ReplyDeleteIf they had not been new....
DeleteThis is what I'd call a crap ton of shitty news. Or, shitty shoes.
ReplyDeleteDamn! Cat shit is the worst.
I can certainly think of a million things I would rather do than clean cat poop off my shoes.
ReplyDelete