My two year old has many well-loved, well-traveled and now rather dirty stuffed animals. Many of them are from that Audubon collection of birds with batteries inside, so I know I can't put them in the washer. Can other animals get put in the washing machine? Is there a good way to clean the surface of animals? What would you use? Thanks!
Sometimes I do. I just throw them right into the washer and dryer. They come out fluffy and clean! For the ones with batteries I guess I would just use a soapy washcloth and scrub and then one to rinse and then just air dry. For dolls that have a plastic head I put them in a pillowcase first.
I put stuffed animals in a lingerie bag and wash them on the delicate cycle.
I send my son's stuffed animals through the washer and dryer frequently. They seem to dry all the way through, and so far none of them have been ruined in any way.
I agree with Sunshine - on the delicate cycle, and spray on some spray and wash if you have to. I also wash my kids backpacks like this too!
My son's favorite stuffed animal, the one he sleeps with, is the only one that really gets dirty enough to have to wash. I throw it in a lingerie bag and wash it on the delicate cycle, then toss it in the dryer on low heat. So far so good!
Toys that are precious but washable I hand wash with mild detergent or soap in the sink and hang up to dry.
Toys that are not so precious I put in pillow cases and they go in the washer on delicate and are usually hung to dry. Sometimes in the dryer.
Toys that cannot be soaked I do my best by wiping the surface with a damp cloth and mild soap.
I wash the washable ones in a pillowcase in the washer and dry in the dryer. I'd always washed his bear "Arnold" every couple of months because he holds and snuggles him several times a day, now it's a weekly wash since he developed asthma at 3.5 last November.
Surface washable only loveys I use cleaning wipes like you use on countertops, wipe and air dry.
When my boys had their "doggies," I washed them weekly (if they got gross before then, I washed them right away). I never purchased stuffed animals I couldn't put in the washer. I just threw their doggies in with the towels.
The only one of DD's stuffed toys that gets dirty enough to need to be cleaned is her teddy bear that she cuddles and sleeps with all the time. The rest are fine - I've only had to wash a few of them once because they got barfed or peed on by accident late at night. I've always just washed them in the washer.
Stuffed animals that don't make noise get washed on a gentle cycle and dried on low heat.
Stuffed animals that make noise get wiped down with a baby wipe when they are dirty.
I wash them when they look or seem dirty. I don't have the time to wash all 100 (okay, maybe not 100, but it's a lot!) stuffed animals that are in DD's room.
Two times I have thrown them all in the washer:
1). My dog felt a need to defecate in my son's toy box filled with stuffed toy animals.
2) my son had head lice
All survived the journey.
