What Does A Dead Mouse Smell Like?

Need to get rid of mice? Read on to learn the answers to all of your important questions. Need help? Call our professionals today to get started.

Mice In Your Home

The house mouse is a common household pest and can be found in every state in the U.S. except Hawaii. Mice are highly adaptable small mammals that need food, warmth, and shelter to survive. Your home is just the kind of place they are looking for to fulfill all these needs. Sometimes mice get stuck in the walls or floors of your home and perish there. When this happens, dead mice emit a distinct odor that is hard to forget. What is this smell and how is it produced?

What Do Dead Mice Smell Like?

You may not even know that you have any mice in your house as they are great at hiding in walls and air ducts. So when you begin to notice a slight stench that gets gradually more noticeable, a dead mouse might not be the first thing that comes to mind. If you notice a rancid smell that doesn’t seem to have any observable referent and has never occurred in your home before, it might be a dead mouse. The smell of a dead mouse is said to smell like rotten cabbage or any other similar smell of decay. The smell itself is a combination of methane, sulfur dioxide, hydrocarbons and other chemicals. 

The odor from a dead mouse will start subtly and grow stronger over time, and can remain in the home for a few weeks even after the mouse is removed. The smell can permeate everything in the room as well: bedding, clothing and linens should be washed after you rid your home of the dead mouse. Another thing to remember is that the smell of a small rodent decaying is the same whether it is a mouse, a rat or any other small mammal.  

Are Dead Mice In The Home A Health Risk?

House mice, while not a major driver of many serious diseases, still present the possibility of disease transmission and thus pose a health risk to you, your family and your pets. Mice in your home can also contaminate your food and damage food packaging. And clearly, if they happen to perish in your home, the terrible smell can cling to your walls, linens and furnishings for weeks and can be costly to clean. If you think you have active mice in your home, avoid the possibility of having to deal with a dead mouse by contacting a pest control specialist today. 

If you have begun to notice a rancid smell in your home and are not sure what is creating the stench, reach out to a pest control specialist who has experience in the smells that pests create and can root out your particular issue and create a plan to rid your home of any pest and their accompanying smells. 

Find A Pest Specialist For Mice Control

If you are concerned about mice control for your home, please give us a call or fill out the form on this page. PestControlExperts.com is a team of experts who are highly qualified to provide the best recommendations for you and your home, no matter which part of the United States you live in.