I found something that might help smell a bit, is it safe?

[amazing_rat]

My mom said I could get ratties from Serendipity Rodentry's litters if she could walk into my room 5 out of 6 days and not be blown away by smell (she's very sensitive). So, to help she got me this stuff called "ammo litter urine odor absorber" It is made of resin and says that you put one cup in the cage and is safe if eaten. It also says, "Great for gerbils, hamsters, mice, guinea pigs, and rabbits" Does this sound safe for my ratties?

[VegetarianPetLuvR]

I'm very weary of using ANYTHING to cover up the rat smell.

If the cage is big enough, cleaned out often enough, and good litter is used, there shouldn't be much smell. My girls and their cage don't smell at all, even in my tiny room, unless I can't clean the cage on time and do it a day later. Then there's a slight odour. Not much.

[amazing_rat]

Yes, I do that, but my mom wants it 5 out of the 6 days, so by the 5th day it gets too stinky for my mom's liking.

[rapforjane]

Amazing_rat, have you looked into Tap-A-Drop NilOdor? I KNOW kimsark sells it.

Lemme give you a link, just in case. From what people have told me, you add a little to the water you're cleaning the cage with and it neutralizes the smell, and what else you can do is put a "drop" (I don't really know how much... ) on a tissue and leave it somewhere in the room with the ratties and it neutralizes their odor as well.

http://www.kimsarkrescue.org/

you click on ark store and then you click "Cleaning and Odor Supplies" and it'll be right at the top of the page.

I've never used it, but I've heard A LOT of good things about it.

[amazing_rat]

I was actually going to get that, but my mom already got this.

[rapforjane]

I'd be weary of putting something in their cage, personally. Where did you buy it from? PetCo and PetsMart will take anything back, so if you bought it from their store, try to get your money back. Actually, if you got it from an actual store, they should take it back with a receipt.

[amazing_rat]

She got it a Acme, and it's already open. I think I'll try it, since it says it is safe for so many small animals.

[Hedgehaven]

It's safe. It's a mineral. Zeolite resin, which absorbs the odors. Actually zeolite can be purchased very cheaply in most health food stores. The zeolite rock can be set in a room and will absorb the odors. It can be set in a refrigerator and it will replace the baking soda for odor absorbtion. Put it outside in the sun for 8 hours and it recharges. All natural and safe.

That said, rats that are kept clean are not going to smell unless they are on a bad diet. A rat on a healthy diet in a clean cage is only going to have an odor immediately prior to cage cleaning. You can prevent that by being scrupulously clean. Using an odor absorbent can lead to the very very bad habit of not keeping the cage as clean as it should be.

[aphoeniceus]

Why cant you just clean the cage every five days???  Seems easier that way to me...

[amazing_rat]

Okay, I didn't get this, my mom did. Also, I clean it once a week because it tires me out so much.  It doesn't matter much, because now my mom says I can't get more than 2 for a while(she'll probably say that until I move out) and my dad says I can never get more than 2. I am glad I can use it, but my cage never smells that much to me, my parents just want it to smell less than fresh air!

[aphoeniceus]

Okay, I didn't get this, my mom did. Also, I clean it once a week because it tires me out so much.  It doesn't matter much, because now my mom says I can't get more than 2 for a while(she'll probably say that until I move out) and my dad says I can never get more than 2. I am glad I can use it, but my cage never smells that much to me, my parents just want it to smell less than fresh air!

Sorry if I came off rude, it wasnt my intention.  At least the stuff your mom got is good, which has already been said.  I was just mentioning that if it stinks to your mom, maybe just cleaning it out every 5 days would be easier.  It wouldnt be hard cleaning a cage with two rats.  I have 6 in one cage and I clean it once a week and it only takes me a little over an hour.  Good luck with your little ones.  I am sure your parents will learn to love them and may let you get more later

[rapforjane]

you just got your ratties, maybe give your folks some time to warm up to them. If the smell bothers your mom with 2 rats, I'd stick with just 2 rats, and stop thinking about more right now.

That said, I DID have to wait until I moved out (kinda...) to have rats.

[Dearpie]

Is this something you  can  just put BESIDE the cage? I would just be hesitant to have them eat it.  It doesn't sound like it's necessary to put into the cage.  Besides, it takes up valuable floor space for the rats to play on! 

[Han]

I, too, would be wary of too much cleaning - depending on whether you have boys or girls, but boys tend to smell more anyway - as if you clean tooooo much, their lovely home smell is removed, so they pee all the more. Self-defeating!

We have two levels of cleaning - one is a 'squirty-clean' where we remove anything removable and give it a quick squirt with squirty-disinfectant and a wipe over (includes removing and replacing any hammocks if necessary - a quick waft in front of your nose will tell you if it's time to clean them!) - it doesn't involve too much poop-scooping as you could be there forever! And the other is a full clean, where we dismantle the whole thing, get the sink filled up with hot water & washing-up liquid and get the litter scooped out, bars scrubbed, the works. We do a squirty clean once or twice a week as required, and a full clean once a fortnight. We have 4 boys. We did the same with 11 rats, and needed to clean a little more frequently.

I think cleaning every 5 days is probably OK, maybe you could do a squirty-clean every third day, and full clean once a week?

TBH, your mum is prolly going to go easier on you over time if you just carry on as you are doing and show her that you respect her house and wishes, IME anyway this works esp when the rats are ripping their newspaper all night and you get fed up with not being able to sleep and put the cage out on the landing next to the pile of laundry which includes your mum's bedsheets which get pulled in deftly and nibbled to pieces... oh well, they needed replacing BUT sounds like your mum is actually quite cool if she's trying to help you rather than just yelling you to get rid of them. 

HAN

[Rat girl]

Two rats should be easy to clean and keep smell's virtually non existant.

I have 22 rats, all in my "rat room" and as long as i clean the cages twice a week (removing all bedding and hammocks) and them take the whole thing and scrub it once a week with Vinegar in the bathtub or whatever, i have no smells.  As long as you use a good bedding it shouldnt be a problem.

I also put a little vinegar in the my water bottles.

[LifeInCircuit]

I, too, would be wary of too much cleaning - depending on whether you have boys or girls, but boys tend to smell more anyway - as if you clean tooooo much, their lovely home smell is removed, so they pee all the more. Self-defeating!

This is really more true for mice than it is with rats.

[amazing_rat]

I have decided to stop using it, because it makes the cage smell more.  For now, I am using YN under the eco-bedding and it works wonderfully! I try to change the hammock and beddint twice a week too. (BTW, my Dearpie hammock is coming this weekend!)

[rapforjane]

Yay for no smell!!!

[lisa.j.31]

When I clean my girls cage out I use antibacterial soap and once rinsed I put about 1/4 cup white vinegar in the tank and slosh it around then rinse very good. It takes out any odor in the cage and helps control the odor as well. I too am very sensitive to the smell so I just clean both cages twice a week it really keeps the cages from smelling at all. Good luck!

[Cricket Song]

Hi amazingrat! I'm the mom of Frisco & Simon, your boys' brothers. 

I, too, have found my favorite combination to be YN under EcoBedding. They looooove the EcoBedding to shove around, burrow in, etc., but on its own it is not as good at controlling odors.