How to Remove Pet Urine in Carpet

Notice: As of 4/7/2026, we are no longer offering subsurface pet odor treatment or any odor removal service below the carpet, rug, wood, tile or upholstery. Please refer to our DIY pet odor removal guide for comprehensive instructions on how to treat pet odors below carpet. After offering this service for over a decade, we have found that it carries a much higher rate of complaint than success. This is not because we provided inferior service, but that the service has too many obstacles to deliver precise results. A few of these obstacles are listed below.

1. There is a widely believed misconception that cleaning their carpet solves the pet odor issue without realizing that the source of the odor is in the carpet pad and wood or concrete subfloor below.
2. Pet urine causes far more damage to all types of flooring than most of people realize. Our accepting the liability to remove pet urine odor from carpet pad, wood subfloors, porous grout or foam cushions puts more liability on us than we care to bear.
3. Locating pet urine with a UV light should be done at night – not during the day. Most residential homes do not have adequate window shades for us to locate all the urine spots, so the results vary based the level of sunlight in the room.
4. Pet urine cannot stain polyester carpet. If the urine spot has been previously cleaned, we cannot find it with a UV light. Searching with a moisture meter is possible, but very time consuming and any metal in the floor can give a false reading.
5. Significant odor elimination is possible, but it requires far more time than the instant-results most customers expect. Many carpet cleaning companies offer oxygen-based treatments or fragrances, but these are only temporary. We use Ur-OUT, which is a probiotic digestive bacteria that eliminates the odor, but it takes two to four weeks or longer for significant, permanent results.

Luckily for Nashville pet owners, it’s September and cooler weather is on the way. You’ll notice less pet odor coming from your carpet as the humidity levels drop outside.

Dog urine and pet odors are an issue of the pad and not so much of the carpet. When Fido pees on the carpet, the urine absorbs into the carpet pad as it is the equivalent to a sponge. The water in the urine eventually evaporates leaving behind concentrated amounts of salt and organic waste.

Pet urine odor causes homeowners thousands of dollars every year – not to mention unpleasant odors that make us cringe whenever enjoying our home. Not only is the carpet stained, but the odors are reminiscent of a truck stop restroom.

Why Pet Urine Stinks

Back to the carpet pad – The semi-dried urine contains salt that is always thirsty. This is why you typically notice pet odors on the second floor first because it’s where humidity gathers. The urine salt absorbs the moisture which then feeds the limited amount of bacteria. The bacteria then converts the nitrogen within the urine to ammonia gas, basically. This is called the nitrogen cycle and all life depends on this process for survival. Learn more about our pet urine odor removal service.

How to Treat Pet Urine

Now that you know the basics of pet odor, lets talk about remediation. A quick walk through your local grocer’s pet isle, you’ll notice that most of the shelf bought cleaners cater to the visual stain as opposed to the odors caused by dog urine. If the dog urine and pet odors are coming from the pad, then why treat the surface?

Whether it’s a misinformed customer or capitalism at its best, cleaning the surface does nothing for removing pet urine odors. We recommend you treat the carpet pad with enzymatic cleaner for best results. Note: It’s not an instant process. The bacteria takes time to breakdown and convert the nitrogen. The benefit however is that the results are permanent. While the process may not remove all the urine odor smells, it should work significantly. Learn more about removing pet urine and the nitrogen cycle.