Two sanitation tips for office owners who will be implementing a bring-your-dog-to-work policy

Allowing your employees to bring their dogs to the office can be a very effective way to create a happier and calmer atmosphere in the workplace. If you have made the decision to implement a policy of this kind, here is some advice that you should follow to ensure that the presence of these animals in the office does not cause sanitation problems.

Have a meeting with the cleaners to discuss the changes they may need to make to their office cleaning routine

Before implementing this policy, you should contact the company whose cleaning services you use and ask to have a meeting with the cleaners that they usually send to your office. The reason for this is as follows: if there will be dogs roaming around the premises on a regular basis, then these cleaners will need to make a few adjustments to their cleaning routine.

For example, you might need to extend the length of their work shifts slightly, as they may have to spend some extra time hoovering the floors in your office due to the considerable amount of fur and dander that your employees' pets will shed onto these surfaces each day. Additionally, you may have to ask them to start using cleaning products with anti-bacterial ingredients in them on any surfaces that the dogs could jump on or rest their paws against (like the chairs, desks, windowsills, etc.), as most dogs get quite a lot of muck on their paws when walking outdoors and this muck could harbour harmful bacteria that might make your staff members sick if it is transferred onto surfaces that these people touch.  

Having this meeting will ensure that the cleaners fully understand the impact that the animals will have on your premises and will, in turn, ensure they can come up with a cleaning plan that is appropriate for a pet-friendly office and that their work shifts are altered to give them enough time to complete any additional tasks that they now need to do.

Clearly explain to your staff what type of pet-related mess the office cleaners are prepared to deal with

It is also important to talk to the staff in your office about what type of pet-related mess they can expect the cleaners to take care of for them. Generally speaking, companies that provide cleaning services of this kind will be happy to do some extra hoovering or to make changes to their cleaning products, but will not deal with any animal waste caused by pets having 'accidents' in an office.

If this is the case with the cleaners who come to your office, it is vital to ensure the dog-owning staff members in your workplace are aware of this so that they can bring along the necessary sanitation products (such as dog toilet bags and disinfectant for the area on which the waste was left, etc.) that they need to clean up their pet's accidents.

Contact an office cleaning company for more information.