pet connection

If I weren’t a Dyson cult member before (I love my DC-15 Animal upright), my adoration of the Dyson DC-16 Animal bagless handheld vac.would surely put me in that category now. Dyson sent me a test model a few weeks ago. The charger base mounted easily on the side of my garage cabinets and the vac slipped just as easily onto that base. Charged it up overnight and took it for a spin in the morning.

Mind you, I feel sorry for vacs in this house. At this time of year my dogs shed enough every day to make a cat. I can vacuum a furball that’s clinging to a table leg, and an hour later there’s another in the same place.

I slipped the crevasse tool onto the Dyson and have been using the lightweight and easy to maneuver handheld a couple times a day since. As advertised, the thing sucks like a demon and doesn’t lose power as you work. When it’s time to empty the cannister — every few minutes, in my case — simply hold the unit over the trash can, press a button and all the crap drops into the trash. Snap the bottom back into place and off you go.

Like all the Dysons, high performance doesn’t come cheap — the DC-16 retails for $200. But its smart design and great performance will make you happy you popped for the little beast. Hair-Be-Gone.