Dyson v10 animal works great but is hard on my wrist and trigger finger - there are after market products people have made to slip on and hold the button down for you but it’s still a bit heavy if operating for a while. Bought a newer dyson and the suction is too strong - doesn’t work well on carpet. Roomba 980 was wonderful - gave to a family member. I7+ that empties itself doesn’t work near as well (always getting stuck or having an error).

"works great, but she says it doesn't pick up much."

Doesn't sound to me like it works great! I tried bissell pet vacuum. It was terrible. Waste of money. Wish I had something positive to direct you to instead of only what to stay away from. Your mother in law is 45 years old than me and sounds more fit than I am. What a lucky woman!

It's not cordless but I bought my elderly mom an Oreck and it's surprisingly lightweight and great at picking up cat hair from carpet and rugs

I just bought a Miele Triflex HX1 Pro
I was disappointed at the amount of plastic it’s built with, but that’s what keeps it lightweight.
I have 5 mad shedders in my household and rugs on hardwood floors. It seems to pick up pet hair very well- A real positive is that I don’t have to keep pressure on a button to keep it going. No sore finger!

If you are considering a Dyson check out their website. They currently have $200-$300 discounts from the usual MSRP and their website does a good job describing the features of each model for comparison. Higher number models have larger dust bins and longer run time along with other features. The descriptions tell you how much each one weighs along with the estimated run time. I think there are some models that don't require you to press the trigger to keep them running. I will add that I've found their online support tools to be excellent for troubleshooting. In all the years I've had mine I've only had two problems and I was able to solve myself by using the website. I've replaced one battery - purchased a less expensive brand from A'zon based on a recommendation from someone on another forum here and it's been working fine.

Notice from CR's ratings of cordless stick vacuums:

"Consumer Reports does not currently recommend any cordless stick vacuums because of the generally high incidence of problems reported by our members. The problems can include batteries that diminish in power over time or die completely. Such problems are particularly acute by the fifth year of ownership."

I'd want more data from CR - what was the breakdown by brand for these complaints. I suspect people balk at the price of Dyson and buy a less expensive, more problematic brand.

Based on recommendations on houzz, i purchased a Dyson V15 detect.

I am happy with the results, I think it weighs 6 lbs, and I purchased a storage rack.

@3katz4me: "I'd want more data from CR..."

CR tested 50 models from Samsung, Miele, Shark, Dyson, Hoover, Tineco, Ryobi, LG, Bissell, Black&Decker, Makita, Eufy, and Kenmore.

There was NO relationship between price and overall performance.

"I suspect people balk at the price of Dyson and buy a less expensive, more problematic brand."

Among brands with a predicted reliability rating, Dyson had a rating of 2 out of 5.

another vote for Dyson v15 detect. Lightweight, cordless, turns on with a push button so no holding trigger down and does a great job on pet hair. I use it on hardwood and area rugs and have been very happy with it.

I have a Dyson and agree that the trigger can be trying--I change arms frequently so that it doesn't bother me but I've thought about putting a clip on it. I don't need a deadman switch on a vacuum cleaner thank you very much.

After several years I had to take it apart and glue an interior piece back together but mine gets dropped hard a lot. (There were enough videos on Youtube to make me think it is a common issue, though.)

It's okay with fur.

I’ve got the Dyson V10 and I really like it. Does great on tile and rugs. I have hand OA and don’t find the trigger bothersome, probably because the battery doesn’t last all that long. I have a robot too, but the Dyson is my go to for the tiled first level and carpeted stairs. Oh, I have one cat.

I bought three weeks ago a Tineco Pwrhero 11 ZT (ZeroTangle), which seems to be a model/feature combo available at W'mrt. It's the first cordless stickvac I've owned so I have no comparison comments to other brands. It performs nicely by my measure and is much more convenient than pulling out my circa 1974 Hoover Celebrity canister vac.

The zero tangle aspect is a brush with comb design on the power head to avoid hair wrapping. I don't have pets in the house but it picked up a hair in my bathrooms and I use it to vacuum loose hair from my shower stall. Haven't found any on the brush roll thus far. Tineco has a trigger lock on most (all?) of their models. Pwrhero has three speed/power choices -- I/low, II/med, and Max/boost. I run it on primarily on mediium. The battery charge lasts long enough at medium to reasonably cover the travertine tile areas of my house, which is everything except the three bedrooms. Stated estimated runtime (with non-powered attachments) is 35 mins on low, 19 mins medium, 12 mins on Max. Full charge time for a depleted battery is kinda long at 4 to 5 hrs. Spares can be had for additional runtime. The charger plug connects directly to the battery pack. The wall mount has a storage slot for an extra battery.

After burning through 2 Dysons over the years I bought a Shark. Much cheaper and does a great job.