How To Clean Stuffed Toys Including Animals

Stuffed toys have a knack for collecting dust and dirt. Usually because they are sitting around where dust can get to them, or else they belong to a child.

Children have the wonderful ability to put food all over them, or take them out into the yard. Usually smaller children take them where ever they go, so dropping them and leaving them around can be an issue.

When this is the case they need constant cleaning, especially for the very young children, who have a habit of putting everything in their mouth, including their stuffed toys. You don't want your baby or toddler putting it in their mouth when it is so dirty. Its not difficult to clean them, in fact they can be quite easy.

How to Clean Stuffed Toys

Warm Gentle Machine

I’ve never found cleaning any of the fluffy animals, to be a problem. I usually put them in the washing machine on gentle. It must be on gentle, or you can ruin the stuffed toys as the machine can be too rough.

You can put several in together. The best thing I found when the child is little is to use Lux soap flakes. This is very gentle to the stuffed toys and as your little children or baby puts them in their mouth it is safer for the child.

Make sure you follow the instructions on the soap packet. Of course you'll need hot water to dissolve the flakes, but once done make the water warm, to wash the fluffy toys, not hot. Take them out of the machine when finished and you can peg them on the line by their ears, or you can lay them flat somewhere outside on a towel, turning as each side gets dry.

This is the quickest and easiest way to clean them.

Hand Washing

Hand washing is also an excellent way to clean stuffed toys. You would use the same method as for in the machine, except use squeezing motions of the toy to get the water getting the dirt out. Be sure to rinse in clean water after you've done this to wash out the detergent.

Wet Sponge or Cloth

Another technique to clean them is to wet a sponge with warm, sudsy water, using Lux soap flakes once again, and gently wipe it down. Of course this is nowhere near as efficient as the above two methods, however for in between cleans it helps. Be sure to wipe it down with a clean clear water sponge after the soap. You don't want your child eating the soap even though it is much safer than other detergents.

If you have another method for cleaning stuffed toys and would like to share it here, drop us an email and we will contribute it to you.

How often Should You Clean Them

It will wear them out if you are constantly washing them especially in the machine. There are certain stuffed toys or animals that are made of a material that can be washed often. Others are not.

I find that most fluffy animals or toys if stored in a closed cupboard, or toy box, and are indoor toys, only need cleaning every few years, this is usually when the child gets older.

NOTE: Once the child gets bigger, you can use a gentle liquid detergent which is much easier to use than the soap flakes.