# Ways to reduce odor



## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

Hello, everyone. I have 3 male rats and my parents are telling me that they smell badly and that it could be dangerous for my health since there in my room. I don't really notice it until I come close to their cage. Anyway I've read on here once about baking soda to help eliminate their odor, but I'm not sure how to use it. Do I just sprinkle some baking soda on their bedding? I use kaytee clean and cozy bedding. Also I think I've read you can put it in a container and put it on top of their cage. If I put it on top do I keep the lid closed or open? Could I also put it inside their cage? What have you guys been doing? I've had ferrets not too long ago and I bought them an air filter. I'm thinking about using that next to their cage. I use to use the vinegar/ water mix to clean the ferret. Age and I totally forgot to do that with the rat cage  so I'll defently start doing that. I also read on here about pee rocks. I'll be getting their upgrade cage next week and once I do that I will try to litter box train them. Once I do that I'll add a rock so they can mark on it and pee on it. What are you guys opinions? Does this method work?If you guys recommend any products please feel free to let me know Thanks a bunch!


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## slynnski (Apr 12, 2014)

My boys can be pretty stinky too, even though I spot clean and then do a full clean once a week. I would love to hear some suggestions as well.


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

Ikr, I clean their cage from 3 days to 1 week.


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## ratswithfoxandbear (Feb 12, 2014)

My girls have two litter boxes in their cage-- one has a pee rock in it. I also spot-clean every morning when I wake up to clean up any missed droppings. Litter is changed once every three to four days. The entire cage is cleaned weekly. I use hydrogen peroxide first. Then, I use vinegar. All of their toys get washed with Dr. Braunner's since that's what I tend to use for everything.

What sort of bedding do you use? For instance, I use fleece with an added inexpensive towel ($1.00 store dish towel) underneath each pan. I change fleece once a week and wash the dirty fleece in the washer with a cup of vinegar + scent-free laundry soap (since that's what I buy anyway). I do have girls-- four total-- and my cage only starts to get a bit smelly on the weekend (since it gets to about day 6 or 7 at that point). The bedding will affect how you go about cleaning. When I was using Aspen, I switched the aspen on a weekly basis (and still had the litter pans). I honestly could have gone two weeks if I wanted, but I have a whole weekly-cleaning ritual, so I cleaned weekly then, as well.

I wish you the best of luck! I am always looking for more suggestions to making my rat babies live in the happiest and cleanest environment possible!


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## slynnski (Apr 12, 2014)

I use Carefresh. Fleece seems like it would be so nice and easy, but my boys do like to burrow occasionally. A litter box is a good idea, but how would I go about training them to use it? And how do you get them to use the pee rock?


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

ratswithfoxandbear said:


> My girls have two litter boxes in their cage-- one has a pee rock in it. I also spot-clean every morning when I wake up to clean up any missed droppings. Litter is changed once every three to four days. The entire cage is cleaned weekly. I use hydrogen peroxide first. Then, I use vinegar. All of their toys get washed with Dr. Braunner's since that's what I tend to use for everything.What sort of bedding do you use? For instance, I use fleece with an added inexpensive towel ($1.00 store dish towel) underneath each pan. I change fleece once a week and wash the dirty fleece in the washer with a cup of vinegar + scent-free laundry soap (since that's what I buy anyway). I do have girls-- four total-- and my cage only starts to get a bit smelly on the weekend (since it gets to about day 6 or 7 at that point). The bedding will affect how you go about cleaning. When I was using Aspen, I switched the aspen on a weekly basis (and still had the litter pans). I honestly could have gone two weeks if I wanted, but I have a whole weekly-cleaning ritual, so I cleaned weekly then, as well.I wish you the best of luck! I am always looking for more suggestions to making my rat babies live in the happiest and cleanest environment possible!


 I use kaytee clean and cozy. I'm sure that once I litter box train them then I'll use fleece and put a towel underneath the litter box like you.


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

slynnski said:


> I use Carefresh. Fleece seems like it would be so nice and easy, but my boys do like to burrow occasionally. A litter box is a good idea, but how would I go about training them to use it? And how do you get them to use the pee rock?


There are many YouTube videos that explain how to litter box train them . I'm also curios to know how to teach them to use the pee rock.


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## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

Odor is usually tied directly with diet first. Diets with fillers cause larger, messier, and smellier feces and more pungent urine. Cutting out fillers does wonders.

Try keeping a "fridge pack" box of baking soda by the cage. These are special boxes with mesh sides. Alternatively, you can just keep a bowl of baking soda. You can even put a few drops of essential oil with it.


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

cagedbirdsinging said:


> Odor is usually tied directly with diet first. Diets with fillers cause larger, messier, and smellier feces and more pungent urine. Cutting out fillers does wonders.Try keeping a "fridge pack" box of baking soda by the cage. These are special boxes with mesh sides. Alternatively, you can just keep a bowl of baking soda. You can even put a few drops of essential oil with it.


What are fillers? And where can I find a fridge pack?


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## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

Fillers are things that really have no business being in the food as they are just there to bulk it up without adding nutrients. These are things like corn, wheat, etc.

Fridge packs of baking soda are available pretty much wherever baking soda is sold. It's just a special package designed to go in the fridge.


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

cagedbirdsinging said:


> Fillers are things that really have no business being in the food as they are just there to bulk it up without adding nutrients. These are things like corn, wheat, etc.Fridge packs of baking soda are available pretty much wherever baking soda is sold. It's just a special package designed to go in the fridge.


Oh I see! Thanks


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## MimiSkye (Feb 3, 2014)

ratswithfoxandbear said:


> My girls have two litter boxes in their cage-- one has a pee rock in it. I also spot-clean every morning when I wake up to clean up any missed droppings. Litter is changed once every three to four days. The entire cage is cleaned weekly. I use hydrogen peroxide first. Then, I use vinegar. All of their toys get washed with Dr. Braunner's since that's what I tend to use for everything.
> 
> What sort of bedding do you use? For instance, I use fleece with an added inexpensive towel ($1.00 store dish towel) underneath each pan. I change fleece once a week and wash the dirty fleece in the washer with a cup of vinegar + scent-free laundry soap (since that's what I buy anyway). I do have girls-- four total-- and my cage only starts to get a bit smelly on the weekend (since it gets to about day 6 or 7 at that point). The bedding will affect how you go about cleaning. When I was using Aspen, I switched the aspen on a weekly basis (and still had the litter pans). I honestly could have gone two weeks if I wanted, but I have a whole weekly-cleaning ritual, so I cleaned weekly then, as well.
> 
> I wish you the best of luck! I am always looking for more suggestions to making my rat babies live in the happiest and cleanest environment possible!


My girls are litter box trained but they never pee in it, only poop. What is a pee rock? Do your girls pee in the litter box with the rock? That would make my life so much easier. I use fleece for bedding but they pee all over it and it starts to stink after a few days.


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## TheBears (Aug 8, 2013)

I'm not an expert on pee rocks but I found a thread about it a little while ago and tried it out. Basically you just find a nice smooth rock (like a river rock) about the size of your palm, put it in the litter box and the rats pee on it. There was no training involved with my boys, I guess it's just instinct to pee on it. I'll say when I first put it in I found almost no other urine in the cage on the next cleaning. They don't seem to be using it as much lately but there is definately still urine on the rock. Maybe it's time for a new rock...


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## ratswithfoxandbear (Feb 12, 2014)

MimiSkye said:


> My girls are litter box trained but they never pee in it, only poop. What is a pee rock? Do your girls pee in the litter box with the rock? That would make my life so much easier. I use fleece for bedding but they pee all over it and it starts to stink after a few days.


Just as TheBears said, it is a rock that they pee on that stays in the litter box. It is not going to be the only place that they pee, but it does help a bit.


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## Leraine (Feb 21, 2014)

How often do you clean the cage? Cleaning too often can make the smell worse. Over a decade ago, I would clean my rats' cage twice a day due to allergies. I found out years later that cleaning the cage more often actually makes the smell worse, because I was removing their urine/scent, which would make them scent mark more to compensate...which also made my allergies worse. 

Today, I have a female rat and I don't experience my symptoms nearly as much. I still clean her cage twice a day. I'll replace most of the bedding but I will leave behind some items to leave her scent in the cage. She is litter trained very well so urine and all her poops are cleaned out every 12 hours, and she doesn't smell at all like what my boy rat smelled like 14 years ago. 

I use carefresh natural bedding for her litter pan, and for the rest of her cage I use paper towels. I also have a set of 5 microfiber dish towels that I put in her wooden hut, so she has something warm/soft to sleep on. The paper towels and the carefresh are removed twice a day. She normally doesn't pee on the dish towel but those get cycled out every 3 days or if she pees on it - whichever first. The carefresh is advertised as having odor control, which I do think it does. If her poop is covered in the carefresh, it stops smelling. 

I was in a pet store the other day and I looked in a tank that had 3 males, and it smelled - like boy rat. My girl doesn't smell remotely like that even after 12 hours of her cage not being cleaned, so the smell your parents are complaining about might just be due to the fact that they're males. 

Does the cage smell worse than the rats themselves? Or is it your boys that smell worse? 

As somebody previously mentioned, it may be due to their diet. What are you feeding them? I had my currently girl on Debbie Ducommun's homemade Molasses Mix, which made her cage and her fur smell really offensive for a few days until she adjusted. Then she went back to not smelling offensive anymore. I then switched her to Oxbow Regal Rat, and now she smells a little different, but barely. 

Sometimes when my girl is in her litter box, she'll stand on poop or press her tail up against poop and end up smelling lightly of poop (but that's really only if you have her close to your face). I usually just clean her foot/tail gently with a wet paper towel. This also helps for when she manages to get pee on her fur too. Maybe you can wash your rats like this? Some people bathe their rats with either baby shampoo or some sort of animal shampoo. Some rats even seem to enjoy it, but my girl freaks out when I try to put her in the tub so I'm limited to spot cleaning for now. 

I'd be wary of putting baking soda directly in the cage, because they may kick it up and the powder may irritate their respiratory system.


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

Leraine said:


> How often do you clean the cage? Cleaning too often can make the smell worse. Over a decade ago, I would clean my rats' cage twice a day due to allergies. I found out years later that cleaning the cage more often actually makes the smell worse, because I was removing their urine/scent, which would make them scent mark more to compensate...which also made my allergies worse. Today, I have a female rat and I don't experience my symptoms nearly as much. I still clean her cage twice a day. I'll replace most of the bedding but I will leave behind some items to leave her scent in the cage. She is litter trained very well so urine and all her poops are cleaned out every 12 hours, and she doesn't smell at all like what my boy rat smelled like 14 years ago. I use carefresh natural bedding for her litter pan, and for the rest of her cage I use paper towels. I also have a set of 5 microfiber dish towels that I put in her wooden hut, so she has something warm/soft to sleep on. The paper towels and the carefresh are removed twice a day. She normally doesn't pee on the dish towel but those get cycled out every 3 days or if she pees on it - whichever first. The carefresh is advertised as having odor control, which I do think it does. If her poop is covered in the carefresh, it stops smelling. I was in a pet store the other day and I looked in a tank that had 3 males, and it smelled - like boy rat. My girl doesn't smell remotely like that even after 12 hours of her cage not being cleaned, so the smell your parents are complaining about might just be due to the fact that they're males. Does the cage smell worse than the rats themselves? Or is it your boys that smell worse? As somebody previously mentioned, it may be due to their diet. What are you feeding them? I had my currently girl on Debbie Ducommun's homemade Molasses Mix, which made her cage and her fur smell really offensive for a few days until she adjusted. Then she went back to not smelling offensive anymore. I then switched her to Oxbow Regal Rat, and now she smells a little different, but barely. Sometimes when my girl is in her litter box, she'll stand on poop or press her tail up against poop and end up smelling lightly of poop (but that's really only if you have her close to your face). I usually just clean her foot/tail gently with a wet paper towel. This also helps for when she manages to get pee on her fur too. Maybe you can wash your rats like this? Some people bathe their rats with either baby shampoo or some sort of animal shampoo. Some rats even seem to enjoy it, but my girl freaks out when I try to put her in the tub so I'm limited to spot cleaning for now. I'd be wary of putting baking soda directly in the cage, because they may kick it up and the powder may irritate their respiratory system.


I clean their cage anywhere from 4 days to a week. It's not the rats that I smell it's their cage. I think the diet is the factor that is making them smell. I asked my mom to buy some rat food and she bought the wrong one so I think that this is the problem. Next time I'll get a different brand, so hopefully this fixes it. Thank you everybody!


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## ratty_milkshake (Feb 24, 2014)

If it is the rats themselves that smell it definitely the food.

When my rat room smells I light candles. Obviously this does not help for heavy smell but it really makes a difference for me. I do use scented candles which the ratties dont seem to mind. (I havent read all the threads so I'm sorry if this has been said although i have not seen it elsewhere.)

My Bf who usually complains about smell now mentions how good the house smells. I still clean the cage every 3-5days (i have 4 females) but use candles for the inbetween days.


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## Biku (Mar 12, 2014)

I used the baking soda for my stinky boys. I'd just sprinkle a little under their litter whenever I changed it and kept the open box next to their cage. It kept the odor down a lot for me.


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## Allora (Jan 31, 2014)

I have 5 rats, one cage with 2 boys and the other with 3 girls. My fiance and I are living with 2 room mates, and they didn't even know I had rats until a couple of months into it. This is everything that I do/just started doing:

First off- clean the cage every week. I do this religiously. Second is good bedding, I use carefresh and just started using "Adavanced odor control" which is carefresh bedding that has baking soda inside of it. I mix it with the eco fresh bedding (the cardbord string kind), because the carefresh bedding is dense and the eco bedding helps stretch it out and make it fluffier. I started using litter boxes and use the critter litter pearls. I started using "natures Miracle" odor control spray, which you can use in between cleanings. You spray it while your rats are having play time on their bedding and use it to wipe down the shelves, then 20 mins later you can put the rats back. I just made liners for my shelves out of fleece, so I can wash those every couple of days (I made multiple sets to switch them out). But I also wash my rats. Male rats can get this oil stuff on their fur and it doesn't smell or feel great. I just get baby shampoo and gently wash them every week or every other week, so the rats themselves don't smell at all. 

I know it sounds like a lot of work, but it's really not, and my cages never smell at all. Like I said, my room mates didn't find out for months. They only found out when I got a new cage and it came through the mail.


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## kindhearted (Aug 4, 2011)

If it's in your budget, get your boys neutered and you'll notice a big difference. Before my boy was neutered he smelt bad no matter how much I'd bathe him, he also had this orange stuff on him (secretion from hormones) Plus you'll give them a little extra life after neutering as well, lots of health benefits. You can't go wrong


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

Biku said:


> I used the baking soda for my stinky boys. I'd just sprinkle a little under their litter whenever I changed it and kept the open box next to their cage. It kept the odor down a lot for me.


 Great! I'll defently try that!


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

ratty_milkshake said:


> If it is the rats themselves that smell it definitely the food.When my rat room smells I light candles. Obviously this does not help for heavy smell but it really makes a difference for me. I do use scented candles which the ratties dont seem to mind. (I havent read all the threads so I'm sorry if this has been said although i have not seen it elsewhere.)My Bf who usually complains about smell now mentions how good the house smells. I still clean the cage every 3-5days (i have 4 females) but use candles for the inbetween days.


That's a great idea! But I do have a question, I thought that rats noses are very good or something so you can't spray perfume or anything in the same room. Are you sure the candles are safe to be in the same room as them?


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## Loonalover613 (Feb 16, 2014)

Allora said:


> I have 5 rats, one cage with 2 boys and the other with 3 girls. My fiance and I are living with 2 room mates, and they didn't even know I had rats until a couple of months into it. This is everything that I do/just started doing:First off- clean the cage every week. I do this religiously. Second is good bedding, I use carefresh and just started using "Adavanced odor control" which is carefresh bedding that has baking soda inside of it. I mix it with the eco fresh bedding (the cardbord string kind), because the carefresh bedding is dense and the eco bedding helps stretch it out and make it fluffier. I started using litter boxes and use the critter litter pearls. I started using "natures Miracle" odor control spray, which you can use in between cleanings. You spray it while your rats are having play time on their bedding and use it to wipe down the shelves, then 20 mins later you can put the rats back. I just made liners for my shelves out of fleece, so I can wash those every couple of days (I made multiple sets to switch them out). But I also wash my rats. Male rats can get this oil stuff on their fur and it doesn't smell or feel great. I just get baby shampoo and gently wash them every week or every other week, so the rats themselves don't smell at all. I know it sounds like a lot of work, but it's really not, and my cages never smell at all. Like I said, my room mates didn't find out for months. They only found out when I got a new cage and it came through the mail.


I'll defently think about getting the bedding that you use


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