How to Clean a Cowhide Rug and Care for Sheepskin Rugs

A cowhide or sheepskin rug is a tanned animal skin with the hair or wool still attached, so it needs leather care and fiber care at the same time. That is why the usual advice for woven rugs does not carry over. If you are looking up how to clean a cowhide rug or freshen a sheepskin, one rule keeps both safe: use as little water as possible, keep heat away, and dry anything damp quickly and completely.

How to Clean a Cowhide Rug Without Wetting the Hide

Clean a cowhide with dry methods first and a barely damp cloth second, and never saturate it or put it in a washing machine.

A cowhide rug is a hair-on hide: short cattle hair on a leather back. The hair lets go of dirt fairly easily, but the leather is sensitive to moisture and can stiffen or warp if it gets wet through.

Routine cowhide rug care looks like this:

1. Shake it out. If the hide is small enough to handle, take it outside and give it a few firm shakes to loosen grit.
2. Vacuum with a soft brush attachment. Skip the spinning brush roll, and move the nozzle in the direction the hair lies.
3. Brush with the grain. An occasional pass with a soft brush, following the hair, keeps it smooth and lifts dust the vacuum missed.
4. Rotate it every few months. One cowhide seller suggests every three months so foot traffic wears the hide evenly.

For spills, speed matters more than product. Scoop up solids, then blot liquids with a clean cloth; rubbing pushes the stain deeper into the hair. If a mark remains, dampen a cloth with lukewarm water and a little mild soap, test it on an inconspicuous spot, and dab gently. Finish by blotting away as much moisture as you can, then let the area air dry with the rug lying flat, away from heat.

A simple test: if water reaches the leather side of a cowhide, you used too much.

Sheepskin Rug Cleaning: Shaking, Brushing and Spot Care

Most sheepskin rug cleaning is dry maintenance: regular shaking, plain-suction vacuuming and, for long wool, brushing.

A sheepskin is a wool fleece on a soft leather pelt, and wool resists soiling well, so light dirt usually comes out without any liquid at all.

• Shake the rug outdoors regularly to fluff the wool and drop loose debris.
• Vacuum with plain suction only, using a handheld attachment or the highest height setting. Turbo and beater-bar heads can leave wool frizzy.
• Brush long, unshorn wool with a wire pet slicker brush or wire wool comb to revive matted areas. Short, shorn sheepskins gain little from brushing.

For a spill, blot right away with a paper towel or clean cloth, and never rub wet wool. Then spot clean with cold water and a wool wash or a small amount of mild liquid detergent, rinse with cool water, and press out as much moisture as you can. Skip laundry detergents, enzyme cleaners, bleach, alkaline products and fabric softener; sheepskin makers warn against all of them. Don't flood the area, because excess water can leave watermarks and damage the backing.

Can You Wash a Sheepskin Rug at Home?

Sometimes, but only when the label allows it, and a full wash is a last resort rather than routine care.

Manufacturers disagree here. One permits a gentle hand or machine wash for its natural skins, while another warns that machine washing permanently changes a rug's texture, size and color. Two kinds of sheepskin should not be washed at home at all:

• Dyed sheepskins, because the color can bleed. Sheepskin maker Auskin recommends dry cleaning for these.
• Sheepskins with a fabric or other backing sewn on, which are generally unsuitable for hand or machine washing.

If you have a natural, unbacked skin and the label permits washing, here is how to wash a sheepskin rug as gently as possible:

1. Use cool or lukewarm water, never hot, and a mild, enzyme-free wool wash.
2. Handle it gently and do not wring it. Press or squeeze the water out instead.
3. Stretch the skin back into shape while it is damp, which helps limit shrinkage as the pelt dries.
4. Dry it flat or over a line, out of direct sun and away from heaters, vents and hair dryers.
5. Never tumble dry or iron it. Dryer heat hardens the suede side.
6. Brush the wool once while damp and again when fully dry to restore its loft.

Sheepskin seller Overland notes that hand washing makes it hard to remove enough water for a rug to dry properly, and a pelt that stays damp in a humid room invites mold. If you can't dry it quickly and thoroughly, don't wash it at home.

Cowhide vs. Sheepskin: Care at a Glance

The two look similar on the floor, but they need slightly different handling, as this comparison shows.

How Heat, Sun and Humidity Damage Hide Rugs

Heat dries out and hardens leather, sunlight fades hair and wool, and humidity that runs too high or too low works against the pelt.

The Canadian Conservation Institute, writing about leather objects, recommends keeping leather in stable conditions between 45 and 55 percent relative humidity. Below about 30 percent, leather loses moisture and turns brittle; above about 65 percent, mold growth and breakdown of the leather fibers become a risk.

In practice, that means:

• Keep the rug out of direct sunlight, or use blinds or curtains. Dyed and darker skins show fading first.
• Don't place it over a floor vent, in front of a space heater or beside a fireplace.
• Keep the air conditioning running in a closed-up home, so the room doesn't sit humid for days.
• Never lay a hide on a floor that is still wet from mopping.

If the leather side feels stiff or shows spots, or the rug smells musty, check for mold before doing anything else. Mold on a hide is a job for a professional, not for a household spray.

Pests and Odors in Cowhide and Sheepskin Rugs

Carpet beetle larvae can feed on hides as well as wool, so check under and around the rug regularly.

University of Kentucky entomologists explain that the larvae digest keratin, the protein in wool, fur, skins and leather, and that they often feed in dark, undisturbed places. Warning signs include:

• threadbare or bare patches in the hair or wool
• small, bristly, tan-to-brown larvae
• shed larval skins on or under the rug
• lint and hair piling up along nearby baseboards, which can feed larvae

Vacuuming removes larvae along with the hair and lint they feed on, so lift the rug now and then and vacuum the floor beneath it. For prevention and treatment steps, see our guide to preventing moths and carpet beetles in rugs.

Odors usually come from trapped dust or a pet accident. Shake the rug and air it in the shade on a dry, breezy day.

For a fresh pet accident on a cowhide, blot thoroughly, dab with mild soap and water without wetting the hide through, then sprinkle baking soda over the spot, leave it for 24 hours and vacuum. On sheepskin, blot and spot clean as described above; urine that has reached the pelt needs professional attention. Our post on living with rugs and pets in South Florida covers the bigger picture.

How to Store a Cowhide or Sheepskin Rug

Store a hide rug clean, completely dry, rolled and wrapped in something breathable.

Cleaning first matters because food stains and body oils attract fabric pests.

1. Shake and vacuum the rug, following our tips on vacuuming an area rug, and make sure any spot-cleaned area is fully dry.
2. Roll it loosely along its length rather than folding it, so the leather doesn't crease; one cowhide seller advises rolling with the leather side in.
3. Wrap it in a clean cotton sheet. Overland advises against keeping sheepskin rugs in plastic bags for long, because plastic doesn't let the fibers breathe.
4. Keep it in a cool, dry, dark, air-conditioned room.
5. Unroll and inspect it every few months for pests or mold.

When to Call a Professional

Call a professional when a problem has reached the leather, when the skin is dyed or backed, or when the rug matters too much to risk.

Typical cases include:

• urine or a large spill that went through to the back
• mold, a lingering musty odor, or leather that has gone stiff or cracked
• a dyed or backed sheepskin that needs more than spot cleaning
• bare patches that suggest pest damage
• a large hide you cannot dry quickly at home

Look for a cleaner that specializes in leather and sheepskin, and ask how they clean and dry hides before you hand one over. Woven wool, silk and Persian rugs are a different matter: they hold up to a careful, individual hand wash and controlled drying, which a hide does not.

Not sure what you have, or whether it needs a specialist? Whether you're in Hialeah, Doral or elsewhere in Miami-Dade, tell us about your rug and we'll help you choose a sensible next step.