# Smelly Bucks



## YourSoJelly (Jul 1, 2013)

Hello! I figured that I would put the smell of bucks in the environment section because it makes their habitat and the surrounding area smell. I have a few questions,if you could answer, it would be much appreciated! Thanks! 

1. What makes bucks smell so bad?
2. Is there a way to fix/stop it?
3. Does diet or stress have a role to play in this?
4. On a scale of 1-10*, how would you rate the smell of a buck, then the smell of a doe?

* 1 being hard to smell after 2 days and 10 being a slap in the face after a hours or two


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## mouseypeach (Jan 13, 2013)

I'm no expert but I do own two very smelly bucks. 
I'm not sure why they smell so bad or if stress plays a factor, but I'll tell you how I try to manage it-

For bedding I use timothy hay and Kaytee soft granule bedding with lavender scent. The lavender scent is pretty strong and helps over power the buck smell. The timothy also helps to hide the smell. In their water I use Marshalls Small pet Good-bye Odor. This stuff does work, it doesn't totally eliminate the smell but it makes my two bucks smell more like one. It helps if you clean the wheel often because I think it fans the smell around. Other than that I clean my 40 gal tank every 2 weeks or sooner. I used to do every week but that was when I had them in a 20 gal tank. Bucks smell worse after you just clean the cage because they go around re-marking everything.

Smelliness rating would be... girls a 1 at best and a 4 at worst. Boys, without all my efforts to keep the smell at bay... i'd say a 10. With everything I do I'd say a 5.


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## Frizzle (Oct 6, 2011)

Also there is some stuff about using real vanilla extract in the water. Besides bucks generally smelling worse then does, it is also an individual mouse thing. I think the buck from my breeding line smells better then the ones I got 1st generation out of petco.


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## Nicola (Jul 8, 2013)

The reason they are a lot smellier than females is because bucks scent mark. It's actually not that bad of a smell (Maybe I'm just used to it?. My guy is pretty clean though). Cleaning out the cage doesn't help with the smell unfortunately, once you finish they will go around and mark their scent once again. 
I wouldn't suggest using scented bedding though (For respiratory health). Having a well-ventilated cage definitely helps with the smell.


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## NikiP (May 7, 2013)

Alfalfa pellets, as in the kind rabbits eat, can also be used in a thin layer in the bottom of enclosures for absorbing & covering up smell. I've got 11 tubs going with 3 bucks at the moment & really don't smell anything. Even the two bucks I recently removed didn't add to the smell either.


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## PPVallhunds (Jul 26, 2010)

As it's been said they sent Mark every where, as far as bucks are concerned he is a handsum stud who wants to pass his genes on to the next generation. So he marks to claim his area and advertise himself to any loverly ladies who may be up for it. It also has its uses In helping to find the way around the place.

I've Hurd castration can help however I know the mouse your looking at is 8 months so he would be too old to put threw surgery in my option. However after a whole you get use to it. My mice at work have moved into new realy big enclosures and so far a month at least with only skip cleaning and they don't smell when in the older smaller ones they would stink by a week.

I would imagine stress would make marking increase, like when you really clean the cage they will run about remarking, what I do is leaving in the old bedding so there sent is still about.
Some bucks smell more then others, when I first got my foxes I noticed the Fox buck smelt slot more then the siamese buck, and generally they still do all though the foxes are not as relaxed as the Siamese so perhaps that's why.
As for the smell I'd say the day after cleaning it starts building up.


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