The stench of a dead and decaying mouse inside the home is enough to drive anyone crazy. It’s hard to fully enjoy your home when you’re forced to smell this undeniably foul odor each time you take a breath. And to make matters worse, it can several weeks for the smell to fully go away if you simply try to “wait it out.”
Before you go packing your luggage and heading out to the nearest hotel, there are a couple of things you can do to eliminate the bad odors.
Avoid Air Fresheners
First and foremost, do not attempt to mask the odor using an air freshener. Nine out of ten times this will only make the smell worse by mixing it with other chemicals. Air fresheners work by adding fragrant chemicals to the air, and using them when there’s a dead mouse around will create an even stronger stench that lingers in your home.
Use White Vinegar
Placing a small bowl of white vinegar in the room where the odor is most severe may help eliminate some of the stench. Vinegar has its own sour odor, but it’s also a highly effective disinfectant that kills odor-causing germs and bacteria. Allowing the bowl to sit uncovered encourages the vinegar to evaporate; thus, killing some of the odor-causing germs.
You really have two different options when it comes to dead mouse odors: you can attempt to find and remove the dead mouse, or you can wait for it to naturally decay. Most normal-sized mice should decay in 1-2 weeks time; however, larger mice and rats may take longer. If the smell is simply too much for you and your family to bear, it’s recommended that you find and remove the corpse rather than waiting for it to decay.
Locating The Dead Mouse
Try to locate the origin of the dead mouse by walking throughout your home and smelling the air. It’s not a pleasant or enjoyable task by any means, but the odor will be stronger around the mouse. Check in rooms, crawlspaces, basements, attics, garages, storage sheds any anywhere else you can easily access, paying close attention to the odor levels.
In the event that you can’t find or access the dead mouse (it’s not uncommon for mice to die behind walls), you can always contact the Attic Guys for a fast and friendly professional rodent removal service.
