I live in a trailer, I have cats outside that live under the trailer. They just moved in within the last few months. I have noticed an ammonia smell coming through my vents.
How can I get rid of the smell without hurting or poisoning my cats or running them off? I want them to stay, to keep the mice away. Anyone with any good ideas?
By Darlene from Dallas, TX
Here are the recent answer to this question.
By Jarron 03/12/2010
This can't be a good situation for you. If you are smelling ammonia it means they are urinating, and if they are urinating they are defecating too... and if you can smell the ammonia, then you are breathing it in and that means you are also -most likely- breathing in very minute particles of fecal matter, and that can set up a whole range of health problems .... the least of which not being Toxoplasmosis.
In humans, Toxoplasma gondii, may affect many different organs of the body, causing many different types of clinical signs. The respiratory system is commonly involved and pneumonia may result. The most common finding is a mild, flu-like illness that lasts a few days. Most people recover uneventfully, but repeated exposure to the lungs can cause scarring and lung damage.
Even if the patient sees a physician, the illness may still be attributed to the flu unless special blood tests are run. If ingestion occurs you could become infected and a carrier.
If I were you, I wouldn't worry so much about the mice as I would my respiratory system and my health. You could always build some sort of cat house and set out food/water to entice them to stay there, and then place barriers to prevent them from going under the trailer again.
Add your voice to the conversation. Click here to answer this question.