JJ in Calgary

I have two dogs, and two cats, both hardwood and carpet in the house. I was getting fed up with vacuuming and then moments later finding hair on the hardwood. I was using a Kenmore which I thought was a pretty good vacuum. I thought I'd buy a Dyson, and return it if I didn't like it. I was not too keen on spending so much money on a vacuum, but the hair was driving me nuts. I decided to try it on my living room after I brought it home.I had shampooed the carpets the previous weekend and vacuumed with the Kenmore moments prior to using the Dyson. The test was on!! I was absolutely stunned at the 'stuff' that appeared in the canister from just doing like 1/4 of the room, all kinds of pet hair and dust. By the time I finished the room, not only did my carpets look better, but the canister was half full! The next day, I did the same, vacuumed the 3 bedrooms, bathroom, hallway and stairs upstairs with the Kenmore, and then used the Dyson right after, again, what came out both stunned and disgusted me!! While in no way could I afford the cost of the Dyson right now (thanks Sears credit!! lol) the way my house looks now, and what came out of the canister has made me a believer. I vacuumed yesterday, and there is very little hair appearing on my hardwood from the carpets. I have posted pictures of before and after on my facebook and now have no less then 3 friends who are going to be buying one. I bought the stow away because with the amount of stairs I have, I didn't want an upright. My only complaints are that the hose gets kinked fairly often, the hose on my Kenmore swiveled, so if I turned, the hose would turn with me, and not kink like the Dyson does, and an on/off switch on the actual wand, by the handle instead of on the machine would also be nice, as would the power and the cord retractor buttons be reversed, I am always reaching for the cord retractor button to shut the vacuum off, but I suppose that's something I will get used to. If I had to pick, my biggest complaint would be that the hose does not swivel and kinks often, but other then that, I believe I have found a vacuum for life, it's a lifesaver with the pets I have, as well as the dirt my son and his friends track in the house!