Best small carpet cleaner for pets?

[MEmama]

I’m in search of a decent small carpet cleaner. Most of the house has hardwood, but we have one room that is carpeted as are the stairs. Ideally I could use it on the upholstered couch and on a couple of the area rugs as well.

Any recommendations for cleaners that work especially well on cat hair and vomit? 
 

Also, do the cleaners tend to bleach the carpet or are they color safe?

[Pawz4me]

I've only ever had the larger carpet cleaner type machines so I can't make a recommendation. But as far as the cleaning solutions, all of them that I've used seem to work fine. They're definitely color safe.

[Wildcat]

Hands down, this is my favorite machine.  I've had mine for about 15 years and it's still going strong. DD just got one and she loves hers, too.

Bissell Little Green Clean Machine

https://www.amazon.com/Bissell-Multi-Purpose-Portable-Upholstery-1400B/dp/B0016HF5GK/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3CUAYM27OJMBQ&keywords=little+green+machine+carpet+cleaner&qid=1668357883&sprefix=little+gree%2Caps%2C210&sr=8-3

Mine has cleaned so much stuff from from pets over the years! We had 2 cats, 1 dog and the messes ranged from housebreaking the dog, to cat vomit, including the deep red color made by dry food yak. It does a great job -- my carpets were beige, too. It's also great for stubborn, high-traffic areas that the larger machines don't get to as well, works wonders on stairs, and even upholstery and cars. It also worked wonders on the beige carpet and the red clay mud that came in on wet/dirty paws. it also got out some grease marks on that beige carpet that were made by the elliptical machine dropping stuff.

And don't let the size fool you... I have used this little guy to clean an entire bedroom floor several times (different rooms in different houses over the years, but I did the whole rooms + closets).  If I could rate this 10 stars, I would. When we moved states, it was one of the things I HAD to bring with us, even leading to tossing a few other things out that wouldn't fit in the car on the last trip.

Pro tip -- you don't need to make a full container of solution for a quick yak clean up. I just learned to kind of eyeball the water-to-solution ration and made about 1/4 - 1/2 tank and it worked great for those tiny jobs. The hotter the water in the mix, the better. I did leave the remaining solution overnight in case of a repeat yak the next day but it doesn't do as good a job with room-temp solution. 
 

[katilac]

Bissel Little Green Machine for cat puke and random human messes. Mine is quite old, but the newer models are the same in appearance. 

If you mean you want it to vacuum up pet hair, i don't think any carpet cleaners is the ideal tool for the job, you need an actual vacuum. 

[Wildcat]

8 minutes ago, katilac said:

Bissel Little Green Machine for cat puke and random human messes. Mine is quite old, but the newer models are the same in appearance. 

If you mean you want it to vacuum up pet hair, i don't think any carpet cleaners is the ideal tool for the job, you need an actual vacuum. 

Yes, OP you definitely want to vacuum well to get the hair up first if you're doing a general clean/spot remover thing. For fresh yak or other wet messes, that isn't an option, so any hair/fur does get sucked into the machine.

[MEmama]

Thanks everyone!

Supply was limited at Target so we bought the Bissel Pro Pet, or something like that. Glad to hear people have had good experience with the brand.

It’ll be used for cat vomit, mostly. Poor Kitty has been having it rough 😞 But I’m kinda excited it can be used on the couch and car seats, too. 

[katilac]

3 hours ago, MEmama said:

and car seats

It's perfect for when someone spills coffee (or I guess other drinks exist also). It cleans deeper than you can with towels, and doesn't stay damp as long.