How to Reduce Rat Cage Odor
Rat Cage Odor Reducing Tips
If you’re cleaning your cage every 7 days, using a good quality bedding, and making sure to clean every item in your cage thoroughly with every deep clean; having a smelly cage can be absurdly frustrating. I’d like to share with you some neat odor-reducing tips I’ve picked up over the years.
1. Make sure you are feeding your rats a healthy diet.
A poor quality diet will cause health issues for your rats, resulting in foul smelling or loose stools, excess skin oil, poor grooming habits, etc. which can all cause your cage to smell stinky. Feeding your rats a healthy block or homemade mix with low protein (18% or under) will reduce odors from stool, skin oil, urine, etc. Click here to see more on rat diets.
2. Use recycled paper bedding
*Note: DO NOT USE ANY KIND OF BEDDING CONTAINING BAKING SODA, THIS CAN KILL YOUR RATS.
I'm talking about newspaper and other things similar. Many rat parents complain that they use either paper bedding or aspen because they heard these were the best at reducing odor and absorbing urine, but their cage still smells. Brand name paper pulp bedding sometimes isn't very good at hiding odors. If you're using aspen, the smell you don't like might actually be the bedding itself. Aspen is very good at hiding odors, however some people just hate the smell of it and assume it's the rats instead of the bedding.
Personally, I noticed that people used to complain about my rats smelling bad all the time, and I never quite knew why since I’ve gone nose-blind to most rat odors. Eventually, I stopped using aspen bedding after a donated bag I received contained lice. I switched back to newspaper after having used aspen for over 4 years, and ever since then, nobody has claimed my cages smell bad.
Paper bedding does not absorb or mask ammonia. However, if used properly, paper bedding is
Plain newsprint packing paper makes a great type of bedding because it's versatile and absorbent. Flat newsprint paper acts as an absorbent liner that will soak up urine. It also makes a great material for your rats to rip up and nest in. The difference between plain newsprint paper and commercial paper bedding is that you can use a lot more newsprint paper without the mess, and its much more absorbent than processed commercial paper.
I'm talking about newspaper and other things similar. Many rat parents complain that they use either paper bedding or aspen because they heard these were the best at reducing odor and absorbing urine, but their cage still smells. Brand name paper pulp bedding sometimes isn't very good at hiding odors. If you're using aspen, the smell you don't like might actually be the bedding itself. Aspen is very good at hiding odors, however some people just hate the smell of it and assume it's the rats instead of the bedding.
Personally, I noticed that people used to complain about my rats smelling bad all the time, and I never quite knew why since I’ve gone nose-blind to most rat odors. Eventually, I stopped using aspen bedding after a donated bag I received contained lice. I switched back to newspaper after having used aspen for over 4 years, and ever since then, nobody has claimed my cages smell bad.
Paper bedding does not absorb or mask ammonia. However, if used properly, paper bedding is
Plain newsprint packing paper makes a great type of bedding because it's versatile and absorbent. Flat newsprint paper acts as an absorbent liner that will soak up urine. It also makes a great material for your rats to rip up and nest in. The difference between plain newsprint paper and commercial paper bedding is that you can use a lot more newsprint paper without the mess, and its much more absorbent than processed commercial paper.
3. Use more nesting material
Rats love to nest. They will fill their favorite hiding places, hoarding areas, and sleeping spots with nesting material to make it more cozy, as well as hide things. In fact, rats like to hide the smell of their own waste for various reasons, so adding more nesting material means your rats will help reduce odors in their cage on their own. Newsprint or packing paper is best; it's extremely good at absorbing odors. Put a large handful of ripped up, cut up, or shredded newspaper in every hideaway, basket or box in your cage. The more packed your cage is with paper, the more urine will be absorbed, and the less it will smell.
4. Use Fleece Properly
Fleece is notorious for its ability to retain odor. When fleece is brand new, it is water resistant. You will need to wash all of your new fleece in hot water, and then thoroughly dry it before using it in your cage. (This is known as a process called wicking.) When fleece has been wicked, the fibers will stretch and allow liquids to pass through.
Supplement your fleece with newsprint or packing paper to absorb more urine. Put a thick layer of paper underneath your fleece liners to absorb urine as it passes through the liner. If you use scraps of fleece, add a stack of paper that's about as thick as the fleece. This also doubles as a material they can rip up and shred so they don't ruin all their fleece.
You should also be changing your fleece liners every 2-3 days and washing it on the hottest setting with a dab of dish soap and a few cups of white distilled vinegar. (Use a pre-wash and extra-rinse cycle if you have those settings; if not, just wash it twice.)
Supplement your fleece with newsprint or packing paper to absorb more urine. Put a thick layer of paper underneath your fleece liners to absorb urine as it passes through the liner. If you use scraps of fleece, add a stack of paper that's about as thick as the fleece. This also doubles as a material they can rip up and shred so they don't ruin all their fleece.
You should also be changing your fleece liners every 2-3 days and washing it on the hottest setting with a dab of dish soap and a few cups of white distilled vinegar. (Use a pre-wash and extra-rinse cycle if you have those settings; if not, just wash it twice.)
5. Do not use commercial cage cleaning products
Commercial cage cleaning products typically contain artificial scents and harsh chemicals. These can irritate your rats and cause them to want to "cover up" the smell with pee, resulting in your cage smelling far worse.
Instead, make your own cage cleaner out of white distilled vinegar and water. Vinegar breaks down the enzymes in urine and neutralizes the odor of ammonia. Fill a small spray bottle with 50/50 vinegar and water. and spray/wipe everything in your cage once per week. (Surprisingly, rats also seem to like the smell of vinegar!) If you don’t like the smell of vinegar, you can add a drop of vanilla extract or lavender or vanilla scented of Essential Oils to make the cage smell more pleasant.
Do not use any kind of artificial scents or perfumes, as they can be distressing for their tiny respiratory systems. (Side note: Don’t use minty scents. Rats hate mint.)
Instead, make your own cage cleaner out of white distilled vinegar and water. Vinegar breaks down the enzymes in urine and neutralizes the odor of ammonia. Fill a small spray bottle with 50/50 vinegar and water. and spray/wipe everything in your cage once per week. (Surprisingly, rats also seem to like the smell of vinegar!) If you don’t like the smell of vinegar, you can add a drop of vanilla extract or lavender or vanilla scented of Essential Oils to make the cage smell more pleasant.
Do not use any kind of artificial scents or perfumes, as they can be distressing for their tiny respiratory systems. (Side note: Don’t use minty scents. Rats hate mint.)
6. Don’t deep clean your cage so often!
I know, it sounds counterproductive. However, just like the previous tip, cleaning your cage too thoroughly, too often, can cause your rats to want to pee even more in order to mark their territory. If you are deep cleaning everything every week by taking all of your accessories out of your cage and thoroughly sanitizing them, your rats may want to overcompensate by marking to make their cage smell more like home. Instead, try to retain some of the smell for them so that they always feel like their cage belongs to them.
For example:
- Every 2-3 days: Simply remove the dirty bedding and nesting materials. Wipe everything down with a dry cloth or paper towel to remove poop or wet urine.
- Every 7 days: Remove dirty bedding and nesting material and wipe all of the cage accessories down with a 50/50 vinegar & water solution.
- Monthly: Remove everything from the cage to deep clean. Soak the items in the bath tub with HOT water and 1 cup of vinegar for 30 minutes to an hour. Drain the tub and rinse everything with cold water. Alternatively, run everything through the dish washer with no detergent, on a “light china” setting. While the items are soaking/washing, use a dish scrubbing brush to clean the bars of the cage and anything inside the cage that’s not removable.
After everything is clean and sanitized, add at least 1 “old/dirty” item, such as a urine-soaked cardboard box, to your clean cage so the rats still have something in their cage that smells like them.
For example:
- Every 2-3 days: Simply remove the dirty bedding and nesting materials. Wipe everything down with a dry cloth or paper towel to remove poop or wet urine.
- Every 7 days: Remove dirty bedding and nesting material and wipe all of the cage accessories down with a 50/50 vinegar & water solution.
- Monthly: Remove everything from the cage to deep clean. Soak the items in the bath tub with HOT water and 1 cup of vinegar for 30 minutes to an hour. Drain the tub and rinse everything with cold water. Alternatively, run everything through the dish washer with no detergent, on a “light china” setting. While the items are soaking/washing, use a dish scrubbing brush to clean the bars of the cage and anything inside the cage that’s not removable.
After everything is clean and sanitized, add at least 1 “old/dirty” item, such as a urine-soaked cardboard box, to your clean cage so the rats still have something in their cage that smells like them.
7. Use Vanilla Extract
Vanilla extract can help neutralize the odors in rat urine. Make sure you use pure extract and nothing artificial.
Put 1-2 tiny drops of alcohol-fee pure vanilla extract per 8 oz of water to their water bottles. This will slightly reduce the odor of their urine. If you do this, make sure you thoroughly wash the bottles every week with a baby bottle cleaning brush, HOT water and white vinegar (do not use soap!) to prevent the growth of mold.
You can also a few drops of vanilla in with your vinegar solution to clean cages. This will both help break down odors and make your cage smell good, without using harsh, artificial scents.
Put 1-2 tiny drops of alcohol-fee pure vanilla extract per 8 oz of water to their water bottles. This will slightly reduce the odor of their urine. If you do this, make sure you thoroughly wash the bottles every week with a baby bottle cleaning brush, HOT water and white vinegar (do not use soap!) to prevent the growth of mold.
You can also a few drops of vanilla in with your vinegar solution to clean cages. This will both help break down odors and make your cage smell good, without using harsh, artificial scents.
8. Try litter training your rats
The process of litter training can be extensive, and requires its own page entirely. You can litter train your rats to poop exclusively in the litter box, and mostly pee in the litter box.
To train your rats to poop in the litter box, pick up excess poop in the cage every day and put it in the box. Eventually, they will get the hint and start to go only in the box.
Training your rats to pee in the box can be a lot trickier, but the easiest way to do it is to use what we call pee rocks. Rats like to pee on smooth, flat surfaces to mark their territory, so placing a fist-sized flat rock in their cage will make them want to scent mark on the rock, and eventually they may even pee on the rock majority of the time.
During the litter training process you’ll want to lightly clean your cage more often, and only clean about half of the dirty litter out of the litter box.
Once your rats are fully litter trained, they will pee and poop less throughout the cage, and more in the box. That way all of the waste is mostly contained to one spot. However, you will still need to clean your cage once a week, because your rats will still pee on everything; just not as much.
To train your rats to poop in the litter box, pick up excess poop in the cage every day and put it in the box. Eventually, they will get the hint and start to go only in the box.
Training your rats to pee in the box can be a lot trickier, but the easiest way to do it is to use what we call pee rocks. Rats like to pee on smooth, flat surfaces to mark their territory, so placing a fist-sized flat rock in their cage will make them want to scent mark on the rock, and eventually they may even pee on the rock majority of the time.
During the litter training process you’ll want to lightly clean your cage more often, and only clean about half of the dirty litter out of the litter box.
Once your rats are fully litter trained, they will pee and poop less throughout the cage, and more in the box. That way all of the waste is mostly contained to one spot. However, you will still need to clean your cage once a week, because your rats will still pee on everything; just not as much.
9. Clean the Air
If you're doing all of these things and you still think your cage smells, you might just have a sensitive nose. Get an air purifier! You will be amazed at how much an air purifier can reduce airborne odors. Ammonia sinks, so place the air purifier somewhere near the bottom of your rats cage, and point the in-flowing air towards your cage. If you have two cages, just place the purifier parallel between them.
Do not point the out-flowing air towards the cage, and do not use the ionized setting, as this can irritate your rats respiratory systems.
Do not point the out-flowing air towards the cage, and do not use the ionized setting, as this can irritate your rats respiratory systems.
This page was last edited December 15, 2017