Bissell really cleans up at BarkWorld

I won't say that we are bad housekeepers but when you have a dog and four cats living in two rooms, the fur really flies. Literally and figuratively. Frankly I think that nasty tracked litter is worse than the fur.

Right before mom left for BarkWorld our over-used vacuum bit the dust. I can't say I was too upset, since I am no fan of that machine as you may recall from this post.

At BarkWorld, mom was really impressed with the Bissell Perfect Sweep Turbo. The staff at the Bissell booth kept making beautiful art out of kitty litter and mom really hated to ruin the artwork by sweeping it up but wow that sweeper worked well! She was excited to hear that the sweeper is only $39.99. A great bargain too. Bissell said she could share a coupon with all my readers. Just go to their website and use the code perfectsweepCAT before 12/31/11. They are having a free shipping promo now too!

Photo by Tamar Arslanian

So she came home and ordered one AND a new vacuum that specializes in pet hair removal -  Rewind Premier Pet Vacuum.

They came this week and while I am not wild about the vacuum (mom and dad love it) I give two paws up for the Turbo Sweep since it makes way less noise than the vacuum monster and I don't even bark. It's great for getting that tracked litter up and easy to use multiple times a day. We keep it charged and ready for any mess!

Dad is the primary house cleaner for us. Dad said he was impressed at how well made they are - sturdy and ready for abuse. He says the sweeper gets up odds and ends like bone pieces, shredded paper (our cats do that), and all that tracked litter and are great for quick pickups and routine clean up. Dad just swept up one of those nasty kitty hairballs too. EEEW.

For deep down cleaning you still need a vacuum and the Rewind is easy to push and has great pet cleaning attachments like the pet turbo eraser tool. The front has a flip down pet hair lifter. When you pull the vacuum back it collects pet hair and debris and then when you push forward it releases the collected debris so the vacuum can suck it up. Click here for a great video on the vacuum. The helix system provides a powerful suction to get even ground in dirt. Dad particularly likes the retractable cord that is longer than usual for extra convenience.

Mom and dad need to save their pennies for one of the Pro Heat carpet cleaners. The spots on the carpet are NOT from me, thank you very much, they are from mom and dad spilling stuff like coffee and food. Mom spilled have a cup of coffee on the bed just today.

Both the vacuum and the turbo sweep are so easy to use and empty. And I swear our living area is much less dusty since we got them too.

Note: Bissell did give mom a coupon good for $5 of the Perfect Sweep Turbo but she actually got an even better discount including free shipping on the website (because she ordered the vacuum too). We received no free product or compensation of any kind in exchange for our review.

Subaru paved the way to BarkWorld for Mom

It is hard to believe that mom has been back from BarkWorld a week now. And I have been enjoying her home for a change and have been remiss in writing my blog.

I'm also trying not to be jealous that mom got to ride with Paige the Border Collie, the You Tube star, all the way to Atlanta and back. I can't make up my mind if I'm jealous because she got to meet Paige or because she spent time with Paige and not me.

The whole trip was possible thanks to one of BarkWorld's biggest sponsors - Subaru. They provided the BarkNRide vehicle - a beautiful Subaru Forester. Both Paige's mom and my mom have cars with really high mileage on them (they drive a long way to go to work every day) so being able to drive a brand new car to Atlanta made them both happy.

Mom is still talking (read rubbing it in my face) about how great Paige was in the car. This photo probably says it all and explains why I did not go. I am never relaxed as much as this in the car. You can see how comfortable the Forester was for Paige. Mom says it was a great ride for humans too.

Mom says she had a great time talking to Lauren, Paige's mom, and the ten hour trip each way really flew by. On the way back they stopped for gas, a potty break and some snacks and mom literally tripped an fell flat on her face. A week later, the bruise on her chin is still quite impressive. Lauren helped mom up. Mom always jokes that one of her talents is that she falls well! She has a more impressive bruise we can't show in a family environment. The funny thing is that the chin didn't hit the ground. Apparently she was wearing her sunglasses around the neck and the chin hit the glasses which also made the bruise on the place we can't show. She scraped her arm which is still ouchy.

Another cool thing about the trip was that BarkWorld fans could follow our trip using an installed PocketFinder GPS unit. When they stopped for lunch at Wendy's, Paige's dad called and asked, "are you guys stopped at a fast food restaurant?" Wow. The Subaru GPS helped keep them from getting lost especially when they got to downtown Atlanta!

By the way, please check out Paige on her You Tube Channel. She is amazing! Follow her on Facebook and Twitter too. And, when you see the PetMeds.Com commercial below, the star of the commercial is Paige (she's at the end so be patient).