How to Remove Pet Hair from Clothes in the Washing Machine

Quick Answer

To remove pet hair from clothes: shake or tumble-dry on air for 10 minutes before washing, use a mesh laundry bag or pet hair catcher in the drum, and wash at 60°C where possible. The most overlooked step is cleaning your washing machine monthly — pet hair and residue build up inside the drum and re-deposit on every subsequent load.

Further reading: Which? — best vacuums for cleaning pet hair · Which? — how to clean a smelly washing machine

Why Pet Hair Is Hard to Remove in the Wash

Pet hair — particularly dog and cat hair — has microscopic barbs along the shaft that cause it to cling to fabric fibres. Water doesn't dislodge it. In fact, the agitation of a wash cycle can drive individual hairs deeper into the weave.

The secondary problem: pet hair that enters the drum doesn't all flush out with the water. Fine hairs can pass through the drum perforations and collect in the filter, but coarser hairs cling to the drum walls, rubber seal, and drain paths. On the next wash, they deposit onto whatever's in the drum.

If you're living in constant cleanup mode, it helps to think in four stages — pre-wash, in-wash, post-wash, and machine maintenance. Skip one and the hair wins. The RSPCA's grooming guidance is worth a read too: regular brushing at the source is the cheapest hair-reduction tool you own.

Before the Wash: Prep That Makes the Difference

Shake items out first

Remove loose surface hair before it enters the machine. Take items outside and give them a firm shake, or tap them against a hard surface. This takes 30 seconds and noticeably reduces the amount of hair in the drum.

10-minute air tumble

If you have a tumble dryer, run items on the air-dry setting (no heat) for 10 minutes before washing. The tumbling loosens embedded hair, and the lint trap catches it. This works better than any pre-wash product.

Use a lint roller on upholstery fabrics

For velvet, fleece, or heavy cotton items where hair is deeply embedded, a lint roller before washing is more effective than trying to remove the hair once it's wet and flattened against the fabric.

Rubber gloves, damp-wiped

A damp rubber washing-up glove dragged across fabric pulls hair off in clumps — especially useful on jumpers and coats where lint rollers skim the surface without grabbing the embedded stuff.

Which Fabrics Are Worst for Pet Hair

Not all fabrics behave the same. Natural fibres with a visible weave or pile — cotton jersey, wool, fleece, corduroy, velvet — act as hair magnets because the fibres themselves have texture for barbed hairs to catch on. Tightly woven synthetics like polyester, nylon activewear, and smooth technical fabrics shed hair far more easily.

The practical takeaway: if you own a heavy shedder, lean towards smoother fabrics for everyday wear and save the chunky knits for days you won't be cuddling the dog. Black clothing is the obvious offender on light-coated pets, but navy, grey, and charcoal are just as bad — you only notice the hair under direct light.

During the Wash

Use a pet hair catcher

Reusable pet hair catchers (typically a spiky ball or mesh bag) work by creating turbulence in the drum that lifts hair from fabric and traps it. They're particularly effective in front-loading machines where the tumbling action helps.

Add white vinegar to the softener drawer

Half a cup of white vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser helps loosen hair from fibres during the rinse. It also softens the water slightly, which reduces the static that holds hair in place. It won't leave a smell once the cycle finishes.

Pick a longer cycle with an extra rinse

A longer cycle means more water flushing through the drum, and an extra rinse catches the stragglers that the main wash missed. On a quick 30-minute cycle, hair that's been dislodged often just redeposits before it can drain away.

Wash pet items separately

Heavy shedders — dog beds, blankets, towels used for drying pets — should be washed separately from regular laundry. A dedicated load lets the cycle flush hair out without spreading it onto your clothes. Mixing a hairy dog blanket with your work shirts guarantees you'll be picking fur off your collar all day. Run the pet load last, then run an empty rinse cycle before your next normal wash.

Temperature matters

Warmer water (40–60°C) loosens hair from fibres more effectively than cold washes. Check care labels before going above 40°C, but where the fabric allows, a warmer wash makes a measurable difference.

Tools That Actually Help (and Ones That Don't)

Honest assessment, because the market is full of gimmicks. Worth buying: reusable pet hair balls, a decent lint roller, and a silicone pet hair remover for the sofa and car seats. Overrated: dryer sheets marketed as hair-grabbers — they help marginally with static but don't actively remove hair, and they coat your lint filter over time. Skip entirely: "anti-pet-hair" detergents that promise to dissolve fur. Hair is keratin; standard detergent won't break it down, and neither will the branded versions.

The Step Most People Miss: Machine Maintenance

If your machine drum and seals are coated in pet hair residue, every load is contaminated before the cycle begins. Hair, oils, and dander that accumulate on internal surfaces re-deposit onto your clothes with the agitation of each wash. The filter is the worst offender — a blocked filter means hair-laden water sits in the drum at the end of the cycle. Our guide on how to stop pet hair clogging your washing machine filter walks through the clean-out routine in detail, and the complete guide to removing pet hair from your washing machine covers drum, seal, and drain in one go.

Running a monthly drum clean with an enzyme-based tablet removes the residue build-up. Enzymes break down the proteins in pet dander and hair — something standard descalers and bleach-based cleaners can't do.

After the Wash

Check the drum and rubber seal after each pet-related load. Wipe visible hair from the seal with a damp cloth. Check and clean the filter every 2–3 months — a clogged filter reduces drain performance and keeps hair circulating in the machine.

If items still have hair after washing, a 10-minute tumble-dry cycle after the wash is the most effective finishing step. The lint trap will catch what the wash cycle didn't.

Related Reading

• How to Stop Pet Hair Clogging Your Filter
• How to Remove Pet Hair from Your WM
• Best Laundry Tips for Pet Owners

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my washing machine leave more pet hair on clothes than before I washed them?

This is caused by hair build-up inside the drum and seals. The machine is re-depositing accumulated hair onto each new load. A drum clean cycle with an enzyme cleaner removes the source of the problem.

Do fabric softeners help with pet hair?

Fabric softener slightly reduces static cling, which can help hair fall off during rinsing. The effect is modest — it helps more as a follow-on to other methods than as a standalone solution.

Is pet hair bad for washing machines?

Over time, yes. Hair accumulates in the filter, drum perforations, and pump. A clogged filter reduces drain speed, and pump blockages are a common cause of washing machine breakdowns. Regular cleaning extends machine life.

Should I use a lint catcher ball in the drum?

They help modestly with surface hair on regular clothes but don't replace shaking or brushing the garment off before washing. The bigger gains come from cleaning the pump filter regularly and running an enzyme maintenance cycle — hair you can't see is already inside the drainage system, where a lint ball can't reach.

Does washing pet-hair clothes separately help?

Yes, noticeably. Running pet-hair items in one load stops hair migrating onto your other clothes, and lets you use a higher temperature and an enzyme detergent without worrying about delicates. Empty the filter after any pet-hair load, and run a hot empty maintenance wash monthly to clear what the filter missed.