# Mouse odor making me sick



## stephisme (Oct 13, 2012)

Hello everyone,

I have had mice for years but my current mice (females) smell awful and I do not know what to do. To make matters worse I recently found out I am allergic to them and keep having asthma/sinus problems because of it.

I use walmart brand carefresh bedding and used to use ultra carefresh bedding (the white one) and neither helped with the smell. I add the liquid to their water that is supposed to help but it does not. Their wheel in particular stinks after a few minutes of me washing it... It is getting so bad that the cage is stinking up the whole entire floor of my house where they are. I do weekly changes and have never had this problem with any other mice.

Does anyone have any tips on how to reduce the smell? I was thinking of lining the wheel with something to make cleaning it a bit easier too because it is very difficult to clean but I am unsure of what I could use to do that.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you in advance.


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## Pamplemousse (Apr 9, 2012)

Have you tried taking the wheel out? I find it makes all the difference. They pee on it and the smell is circulated as they spin. You can replace it with other toys or things to keep them occupied. Mine don't miss it because there are so many other things to be getting up to in their cage, like shredding egg boxes, climbing and nesting.

Ours also use a toilet area, so it's worth trying out putting in a little enclosed plastic house to see if they start peeing in that area alone. You might get lucky.


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## stephisme (Oct 13, 2012)

Thank's for the reply!

I have actually considered doing the wheel but am a bit hesitant. One of the mice is a barberer so without the wheel I am afraid she will go back to doing that/do it more than she is. I even went out and get a very larger tank/cage with tubes to keep them more occupied (thankfully they do not pee in the tubes lol)

If I take the wheel out can you recommend anything else I can do to keep them more occupied... I have used egg cartains with my gerbil (I love that nut) so that's a good idea 

Also, if that doesn't work, can I line the wheel with anything like a very fine sandpaper?

I am checking out the bedding now, thanks!


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## tinyhartmouseries (Dec 30, 2010)

This is a stupid question....I am sure...but is there any chance you have a male mixed in??


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## Seafolly (Mar 13, 2012)

The wheel can get sooo gross I agree. I just resorted to quickly cleaning it almost daily and that helped a LOT.


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## stephisme (Oct 13, 2012)

It's not a stupid question, I thought that one might be a boy too! I looked it up though and they are both girls.

I have always had girls and they have NEVER been this bad before. I mean, it would smell for a few minutes after they peed but that would be it. With these new ones it is all of the time though. Not only that, but I am now magically allergic to them lol.

I love them so much and it's just very frustrating that after years of having mice with no problems this happened.

Thanks again guys!


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## Cait (Oct 3, 2008)

Could you be allergic to the bedding rather than the mice? I know a lot of people in the States hate Carefresh bedding, so it might be good to try another kind just to see if it makes any difference. I have asthma and various allergies too and it would be awful to suddenly become allergic to my mice! I'm majorly allergic to rats (sadly I only discovered this after I got a pair) so I know how you feel


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## andypandy29us (Aug 10, 2012)

i use cheap skipping ropes and hang the rope around the cage so they can climb about and millet for budgies hanging from the top of the cage for them to climb up


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## stephisme (Oct 13, 2012)

Thanks everyone for the replies!

While I am also allergic to the bedding that is only an issue when I am changing the bedding. I had blood tests that said I was allergic to mice  It's to the point that sometimes after playing with them I get red bumps wherever they were. That I do not mind so much, it's the asthma and other allergy symptoms that bug me. The doctor said the smell is going to make it worse for me because I am also allergic to their urine.

I will look into the jump ropes. Would regular jump ropes from the dollar store be okay? Also, I had millet spray that I give my birds. Can they use any kind?

Thank's again guys!


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## CathE. (Oct 12, 2012)

I can say it is surprising females cause you so much smelly trouble! I wonder that maybe their diet is also causing it?

From my own experience I can suggest wood-based, processed beddings like ones for horses which REALLY keep the smell down (as you can imagine when it comes to horse pee, lol).


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## andypandy29us (Aug 10, 2012)

i only use the cheap 'jump ropes' from our pound shops there are 2 for a pound in there they seem happy eating them and climbing on them ..... I have some bungee cords in there at the moment as they were 6 for a pound in the same cheap shop  ... and im sure the bird millet is the same as the budgie millet i use


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## Cait (Oct 3, 2008)

stephisme said:


> It's to the point that sometimes after playing with them I get red bumps wherever they were. That I do not mind so much, it's the asthma and other allergy symptoms that bug me. The doctor said the smell is going to make it worse for me because I am also allergic to their urine.
> 
> I will look into the jump ropes. Would regular jump ropes from the dollar store be okay? Also, I had millet spray that I give my birds. Can they use any kind?


I get the same 'red bumps' when I handle rats, it's where their nails scratch against the skin. I used to get it with my hedgehogs too, as well as occasional hives. It was the asthma reaction that was the issue though (only happened with the rats). I agree with what has been said about getting a good absorbent bedding in that soaks up any urine and keeps the smell down. And wear long sleeved tops when you handle them  I use Aubiose for bedding as it's really absorbent and doesn't irritate my asthma at all (or make me sneeze because it's not dusty).

The millet sprays that you buy loose for birds are fine for mice. Any throwaway packaging like cardboard tubes and boxes will be appreciated, as well as branches (look up safe woods to use).


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## stephisme (Oct 13, 2012)

Thank's for the replys guys! 
I am shocked that female mice are doing this as well... lol. I feed them: http://www.thatpetplace.com/tropical-ca ... t-food-2lb 
It's the same food I used for my previous mice (which I didn't have any problems with) Someone told me to give them parakeet food instead, has anyone ever heard of that? 
I am going to check into the beddings you guys have mentioned. I use aspen bedding for my gerbil (she doesnt really pee much though and when she does it's in a jar lol) do you think aspen bedding would help with the smell?

Thanks again everyone!


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## andypandy29us (Aug 10, 2012)

i use wood shavings to lay on the bottom of the cage to absorbe the urine and shredded paper for the bedding ... the paper is free  so its cheap and effective


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## CathE. (Oct 12, 2012)

I don't want to sound paranoid but there's another case that when mouse pee or poo smells intensley (when it shouldn't be _THAT_ intense) it can be a sign of health condition in digestive system. 
It could be just one of your mice that has the smelly problem. Have you ever treated them for parasites?

This is just a theory though. In most cases, the illness would give other symptoms too, not just the smelly urine, after all. And you seem to be having the trouble for some time now, when -if anything wrong with health - stuff would be visible (like fur condition etc).

I'm trying different options for you here, since it is really rare (in fact - it's the first time I hear of it) that a female urine is so heavy for her/their owner.


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## firestarter (Jun 30, 2010)

not sure if anyone has mentioned this, but i use a tiny drop of vanilla essence in the water of cages which i keep males together in, it helps to make the pee smell abit less obviously wouldnt help the allergy


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## stephisme (Oct 13, 2012)

CathE. said:


> I don't want to sound paranoid but there's another case that when mouse pee or poo smells intensley (when it shouldn't be _THAT_ intense) it can be a sign of health condition in digestive system.
> It could be just one of your mice that has the smelly problem. Have you ever treated them for parasites?
> 
> This is just a theory though. In most cases, the illness would give other symptoms too, not just the smelly urine, after all. And you seem to be having the trouble for some time now, when -if anything wrong with health - stuff would be visible (like fur condition etc).
> ...


Thank's for the response. They don't really have any fur issues except one of the mice is a barterer and picks at the other ones fur sometimes so her face is missing some fur, but that is growing back.

One of the mice is very large... I was concerned about that because she is much bigger than the other one. The same mouse also tends to poop a lot when she is out. Do you think that could be a digestion problem?



firestarter said:


> not sure if anyone has mentioned this, but i use a tiny drop of vanilla essence in the water of cages which i keep males together in, it helps to make the pee smell abit less obviously wouldnt help the allergy


How much vanilla would I use, and is extract okay?

Thanks guys!


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## CathE. (Oct 12, 2012)

stephisme said:


> One of the mice is very large... I was concerned about that because she is much bigger than the other one. The same mouse also tends to poop a lot when she is out. Do you think that could be a digestion problem?
> !


Big size shouldn't be an issue, usually its the opposite - when a mature mouse is too small. So you have a healthy mouse there (unless by big you mean obese, lol). 

When it comes to pooping outside - this should be a normal behaviour, a sign of stress. Some of my mice tend to pee and poop when outside the cage whereas the others are so clean they wait with their business untill I put them back to their cage. As long as the poop is solid and does not smell _VERY_ much (I had this case and believe me - the smell is terrible), there shouldn't be anything wrong. However, in subject of urine smell, I'd also consider checking their kidneys. Do vets in your region offer such service - laboratory tests? I know that in my country only some clinics agree to lab tests (especially blood ones) due to the size of the smallest needle needed and they way it shoud be performed. Unfortunately I don't think there's any other way to make sure the inside of a mouse is ok. And X-ray shows alot too, so in case you ever have doubts about their insides, these should give a clear view on what's happening with their little guts.

Since I asked you about their diet - maybe you could try to change it for two weeks to something different - exclude the fruit ingerdient type? I don't know what _Tropical Carnival_ consists of exactly as we don't have it here, but food is always a good start in such investigations since urine is one of the degistive leftovers after all.  Sometimes vitamins added to their dringking water may result in smelly changes too, depending on what kind of suplement it was.


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## firestarter (Jun 30, 2010)

stephisme said:


> How much vanilla would I use, and is extract okay?
> 
> Thanks guys!


i think extract is the same stuff, i just look for the 'all natural' one and as for amounts literally a drop or 2 into the water bottle is enough, and after few days you hopefully notice the difference


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## Moor-Mice (Oct 10, 2012)

What size water bottle are you using I have found 1 ml of extract to 300ml of water is fine,


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## Gill (Sep 16, 2011)

I had the same problem with a smelly female last year. All the does in the cage were perfectly healthy, so it was concluded that it was caused by one expressing her dominance. Changing the substrate to woodshavings helped, but I believe you can have problems with woodshavings in the States. All I can tell you is that the smell eventually went away.

To help combat your allergy, purchase a pack of inexpensive disposable latex or plastic gloves, and use them when you are cleaning the cage. That way your skin won't come into contact with the urine in the old substrate or bedding. It would also help if you wore a long-sleeved jumper and a pair of thin leather gloves when handling the mice.


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## firestarter (Jun 30, 2010)

Moor-Mice said:


> What size water bottle are you using I have found 1 ml of extract to 300ml of water is fine,


yeh id say about the same, i use about 2 drops in my 500ml bottles and 1 drop in my 300ml bottles


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## Squeakers (Aug 4, 2012)

There diet can also be considered,maybe you feed them high quantities of fresh food and ''kitchen scraps''

This can lead to very wet and smelly poo :lol:


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