Pet Hair Vacuums Reviewed

We have 2 cats and a dog, a fairly common collection of pets (don't tell them I called them "common"). One of the cats is fluffy, the other is a Maine Coon, and the dog is a Yellow Lab/Wolfhound mix. So we have long soft hair and short wiry hair. My hair is actually several feet long, so I probably do more damage than the pets, but they don't make vacuums for hippy chicks. They do, however, make vacuums designed specifically to combat pet hair. We own two of them, a Dyson Animal, and a Bissell Healthy Home. Here's what we've experienced with these two vacuums.

The Dyson Animal is pretty much the gold standard in vacuums for pet hair. We got ours from Amazon.com about 6 years ago for about $600. It has a ball pivot, so it steers easily around corners and under furniture. It's very lightweight, but powerful, and 6 years later, we still love it. I've seen a few companies copying the Dyson design in recent years, but I'll in the 3rd party reviews I've seen, Dyson always comes out on top. In our home, it's been wonderful. I've lent it out a few times and everyone is amazed how much better it is than their regular vacuum. Overall, we love it. However, six bills is a lot of cash, and we have had to do some maintenance on it. All of our previous vacuums just got chucked out when something went wrong (including the one I got for Christmas from an ex the year I was expecting a ring instead), but perhaps once you invest so much in a tool you find a way to repair rather than replace it. Just last year, when the Dyson was about 5 years old, we had to replace the electrical switch. Cost for the part and the labor was all of $35. More recently, we had to replace the beater bar. That was a pain in the butt because the part had to be ordered (read: we had to wait forever) and it was more expensive - about $60, I recall. Still, our local vacuum repair shop is fantastic and is also a professional cleaning supply store, so I'm glad to have found it. I also can't complain about having to make some minor repairs after so many years of hard labor.

Our second vacuum, which we bought while the aforementioned beater bar was being replaced, is a Bissell Healthy Home. After an evening of online research (probably like you're doing right now), it seemed a reasonable option and was in stock at my local Target for a few hundred bucks - on sale, even! The suction is great; it really deep cleans well. The next best feature is the attachment hose with its various attachments. I didn't realize the Dyson hose was such a pain in the neck to use until we got the Bissell. The Bissell hose is very easy to access, the attachments are truly useful, and the suction stays strong. The only problem with the Bissell is, I shouldn't have been surprised to discover, exactly what everyone said it was: the thing weighs a ton. It's not a big deal on some carpeting, but on others it's almost impossible to move. Even my husband, who works out 5 days a week, has to wrestle with it. Still, it cleans well.

So which is better? Overall the Dyson Animal is my preference. However, I can count on the Bissell when the Dyson is on the fritz, and for a lot less money. Hopefully our FURminator will arrive soon, and that may change everything. Well, almost everything. I'm not cutting my hair quite yet.