The Problem

An Apex family with a 100-pound Bernese Mountain Dog had reached their limit with the fur situation in their Toyota 4Runner. The dog rode in the cargo area on a blanket, but the blanket had shifted and bunched up over months of use, allowing massive amounts of thick, tri-colored fur to embed directly into the cargo carpet. Tufts of undercoat had blown into the rear seat area and worked into the cloth seat fabric, the seat belt webbing, and even the rear speakers' mesh grilles. The dog's drool had dried onto the cargo window glass and rear door panels, and damp fur had created a musty smell in the carpet padding underneath the cargo liner. Hair had migrated into the rear air vents and was visibly poking out of the slats. The family had tried pet hair removal at a self-serve car wash in Apex but couldn't make a meaningful dent in the volume — the fur was simply too deeply embedded for consumer-grade tools.

Our Process

• Cargo blanket removal and assessment of fur depth in carpet and padding
• Rubber blade and silicone brush treatment across all cargo carpet surfaces
• Compressed air blowout of rear vents, speaker grilles, and seat belt retractors
• Stiff detail brush agitation on cloth rear seats to loosen embedded undercoat
• High-suction industrial vacuum extraction on all affected surfaces
• Seat belt webbing brushing and cleaning to remove wound-in hair strands
• Drool mark removal from cargo glass and rear door panels
• Hot water extraction on cargo carpet and rear cloth seats with enzyme deodorizer
• Cargo padding inspection and treatment for musty smell
• Final lint roller detail pass on headliner edges and trim gaps

The Results

Every strand of Bernese fur was removed from the 4Runner — a job that took patience given the sheer volume and thickness of the hair. The cargo carpet was completely clean after extraction pulled fur out of the padding layer beneath the surface. The rear seats, seat belts, and even the speaker grilles were fur-free for the first time in over a year. The musty smell from the damp carpet padding was neutralized by the enzyme treatment, and the drool marks were cleaned from every surface. The family invested in a proper cargo liner after seeing the results, and the dog still rides along happily. In the Apex and Raleigh area, pet owners deal with this kind of fur buildup year-round — thick-coated breeds and warm weather make it a constant battle without the right tools. If you're looking for mobile car detailing in Apex, Swift provides professional on-site interior and full detailing.