Bad cage/rat smell...

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amanda1472

amanda1472

Senior Member
Joined
May 25, 2012
Messages
1,213
Location
London, Ontario, Canada
Okay so my parents and my sister keep complaint that the rats 'stink' and they are all pressuring me to move them down to the basement (i really DONT want to do this, i dont adopt them to just stick them down there -.-) but anyways i wanted to make sure if it was even possible since the basement is always a little colder then the rest of the house or if there is a product(s)/things i can try to minimize the smell (i dont smell anything...). Before i got the new cage i use to change the litter and wash the cage every 4-6 days. Now with the new cage i plan to wash the liners every 4-5 days and do a deep cleaning on the cage every 10-14 days.

Any suggestions/ideas, i prefer not to get in a fight with them about moving them down there...

Thanks in advance
 
Our rats are on the main level in an area open to the kitchen. I wipe the levels of the cage daily and do a full clean every 7 days. I often change the hammock (I have two rats and only one hammock in the cage at a time) mid week as I find it is the urine smell that is the strongest and my sweet rats tend to pee in their hammocks. :gaah:

I have only had female rats. I heard that the males can be stinkier due to hormones and neutering can help with that. Do you have females or males?
 
They are boys, about 9-10 weeks. I usually clean it when it starts smelling, which takes about 4-6 days, but i literally put the cage up (the new one) two days ago and they are complaining :roll: i don't understand since it just smell like metal...(from the new 'old' cage)
 
When I had my rats up in my brother's old room (he moved out so we use it a storage or whatever), my mom complained that they smelled and were incredibly loud for such tiny creatures (but that's another story).
She bought a natural odor eater thing unscented, that worked a bit ( just dont but it near the cage for rat noses are sensitive and nowhere that they can get to it).

And I hear baking soda help's too, same deal as the odor eater make sure they can't get to it!
 
I don't know, it depends on how big the cage is. How big is your cage?

I know sometimes it's just family paranoia. I know my step-father dislikes my rats, and whenever ANYTHING smells mildly offensive, he blames it on them. I don't think he's ever even smelt rat pee, considering he doesn't get close enough to them to waft over from a freshly-cleaned cage. :p
 
Perhaps the new cage just smells like a new product (chemical smell?).

Did you wash the new cage before first use? A good wash and airing outside may help if there is that "new" metal/chemical smell.

Some people have more sensitive noses (I know I seem to compared to the rest of my family).


Edited to add that I am laughing over the no avatar pics!
 
I have my 4 boys in my bedroom (which is also the basement). My room is a lot colder than the rest of the house but the rats, these ones and past rats I've had down there, seem to have no issues with it.
Also, I bought an air purifier that stays next to their cage and notice a biiiiggggg difference in the smell when it is on/off. (it could all just be in my head though) lol but I find it really helps.
Obviously it won't help with the cage itself, but just maybe make the whole area less offensive to your parents and sister, making it possible to not have to move them downstairs :)
 
Oh man, my rats STANK SO MUCH, I couldn't believe how other rat owners could put up with not doing a deep clean every day. :/

Seriously, the boys (I had 7 boys) would make the cage start spelling within 12 hours of doing a deep clean, guaranteed. Now, I was told that if I clean frequently, that might make them smell more. So I stopped that for about a month, and gritted my teeth through it, and only did a deep clean once a week, and doing a very light wipe down every 3 days.

Nope. The stink was still there.

I couldn't take it anymore (and neither could my family). I used to spend 2 hours a day just cleaning. @_@
 
The air purifier idea is a WONDERFUL one! I have one next to my cage aswell, and there's a noticeable difference. What kind of cage/liners do you have? Do you use a litter box? Is there netting on the cage?
 
I have only two males. Never seem to have a problem with smells. I use care fresh or an off brand of the same stuff. I clean once a week with vinegar and water then do a final rinse with vanilla and water. When I don't have care fresh I use news paper. That is the only time I smell them and have to change the cage out at least twice a week when I use that.
For a short time I had three rats did the same cleaning and still no smell.
 
Get a large air filter with a permanent hepta air filter and replaceable carbon filters.
Do Not get an ionizer as they are very unhealthy for rats.

I have two Honeywell air filtesr with permanent hepta air filter and replaceable carbon filters.
Works great.
 
The cage:
7404993562_ecb280bfa9.jpg


I like the baking soda idea, and air purifier, but we are tight on money and im sure my parents wont get one when we can juts 'move them'. Im hoping for more of cleaning ideas or etc. I have fleece liners and a litter box at the bottom with some care fresh. And i just washed the cage today, so im thinking 4 days is what it takes to start smelling it. love to get some time of 'smell' that takes away theres, but i suffer from sever migraine and can barely take perfume smells before getting a migraine -.- but any help is appreciated, thanks.
 
First off, I used to use Carefresh in my litterbox too, but after a while it wasn't enough, so I began using Yesterday's News, which is a pelleted cat litter, and it works WONDERS. and it's pretty cheap! it's great stuff.

Second.. I think, from what it looks like atleast, your cage is made of galvanized metal, and there's no coating on it. That's bad news because the uncoated metal can absorb urine smells and the cage itself could be your very issue.
 
Ye,s its an older cage i just got so the power coat has come of. I may get it done depending how much, would have to talk to my parents. And when my carefresh is close to done i will see about yesterday's news. Thanks
 
You should DEFINITELY look into getting it powder coated, that's definitely where the smell is coming from. Not your ratties, or necessarily their waste, but the metal retaining stink, even with the constant cleanings. Yesterday's news should really help you out too, I noticed an instant change in my cage after switching to it.
 
If the powder coating has worn off, then your cage needs to be sandblasted and powder coated.
That is the only thing that will help the smell.
Otherwise, you need to get a new cage.
As others have said, galvanized metal absorbs odor, among other things.


Your rats need to stay upstairs in your bedroom, or in a well used main room.
 
Fleece tends to smell ....
It would likely help if you used dollar store dish drain trays cut to fit and able tied onto the balconies
and if you bought a thick piece of linolum and cut it to fit and laid it on the full wire level.
Then you could wipe the floors down daily and use a smaller amount of fleece or cotton blankets, which you could replace daily.
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=30413&p=418738&hilit=linolum#p418738

Also, powder coated large martins are amazing cages, but smelly crap can get between the wires, where sides, floors and balconies are attached.
If you have not done so, it will help if you take the cage apart, clean it well and put it back together using a few hundred cable ties.
 

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