Mason Jar Paw Washer

This quote, un-quote "Life Hack" came about after the Great Slug Incident of 2020... Ever had to clean squished slug out of dog fur? Me neither, until that fateful day.

Anyhoo, doggo had a great time but we needed some way to tame the mess until we could get home and give her a proper bath. Fortunately Wiferneer and I had also been to the grocery store on this trip and bought sponges for the kitchen. Turns out sponges worked really well to get dirt and about half the slug goo off the dog!

After we got home and got the rest of the slug goo out of doggo's fur, I started thinking a bit more. We'd been talking about buying a silicone paw washer, (affiliate link) I bet the sponges would also make a great paw washer! Add a little water, a sealable container and I'd bet we'd be good to go!

First I tried Tupperware, but the square container really didn't work too well. After a little more rummaging around, it turned out a mason jar was just about the perfect size to fit our pup's paws!

Now disclaimer, our dog is pretty relaxed when we bath her and touch her paws so we feel comfortable using this with her. If your dog is more energetic or gets squirmy I realize the glass jar may be a safety concern. You could also use a plastic Mason jar or similar size wide mouth container (peanut butter container?).

Please do what you're comfortable with.

1 Wide Mouth Mason Jar, Pint

• This is the jar I'm using, the wide mouth and approximate size is the important part.
• Or consider a plastic Mason Jar

3 Sponges

• These are the sponges I used, any sponge with a soft side should work.

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These are super simple to make!

1. First sponge goes into the bottom of the jar with the hard scrubber side down.
2. Second sponge goes on the side with the hard scrubber side facing out.
3. Last sponge goes in next to the second sponge to form a complete "ring" around the top of the jar.
4. Put the lid on and you're done!

When you're ready to use it put enough water in to soften the sponges but not be sopping wet.

• We don't typically use soap since doggo licks her paws occasionally.

Add dirty dog paw and then gently twist and rub.

• For more stubborn messes (like slug goo...) you can remove a sponge and scrub a little.

Voila! Clean dog paw for the ride home!

Alright, that was a quick and easy one!

If you liked it, please consider voting for me in the Mason Jar Speed Challenge!

I imagine the top question is: Does this work better than the commercially available versions?

I'm not sure. Most of the commercial versions I see online have pretty good reviews so I assume they get dirt off dog paws pretty well. This one came about because we had a really dirty dog we needed to clean up fast and I found some common materials that worked for what I needed. For what it's worth, I plan to continue using my version instead of buying one.

How do you clean it?

When it gets dirty, it's easy to dump the water out, wring out the sponges and add a little fresh water. I found I don't always have to remove the sponges, I can just kinda squish them against the jar to wring them out if the dirt doesn't have a lot of rocks (or slug goo...) in it.

Also, again I realize glass containers may be a safety concern, plastic mason jars are available and the commercial dog paw washers are relatively inexpensive. Please do what works best for you!

OK, looks like it's time to go throw the ball, thanks for reading!

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