Question:
Are thousand rat droppings bad for new-born baby & mother's health?
2011-08-19 21:23:39 UTC
Me and my wife bought our very first house in los angeles. It's a bank-owned house so nobody lived there for more than a year and this 750sqft 2bd/1ba house was built in 1947.

We already gave 30 days notice to our apt landlord and are expected to move to our house by end of this month.

Today, I was cleaning up the house when I discovered what looked to be about 500 mouse droppings behind an old kitchen stove and also found another 500 mouse droppings on top of an old water heater. I cleaned them up but am concerned.

The problem is that my wife is to give birth in three weeks and the landlord told us he already found another tenant to move in to our apt. And we can't afford to get another place nor have any relatives or friends near-by.

Question is, do you think it's safe for our soon-to-be born baby son and my wife health-wise to move in and live in this house? Any negative health effects to them because of 1,000 rat droppings throughout the house & maybe 100 or more hiding rats?

I've bought bunch of rat-traps today & hoping for the best. I didn't buy any rat poison as I don't want rats to die behind walls.
Six answers:
Allanas
2011-08-19 21:37:04 UTC
It is a health risk to your pregnant wife and the baby when it's born.



~~~BUT~~~



The risk ends when you clean up the poop and get rid of the rats. So, if you take a few days and do a really good clean up, it should be fine.



WEAR A PROTECTIVE MASK AND GOGGLES!



Sweeping rodent poop kicks up bacteria. If you breathe it in, you could get very, very sick.
marrone
2016-10-17 15:27:19 UTC
Rat Droppings In House
bondurant
2016-10-16 06:19:37 UTC
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww = ( ok, properly atleast do something as properly throw them in a trash can, in case you will kill them, then kill them fairly of leaving them to go through. it is be like someone injured and then buried alive, actual you may help them out somewhat! i'm a mom, an proprietor of two dogs and 2 puppy rats. My rats are the neatest little creatures, they notwithstanding are bred to be pets and have a great a hundred gallon aquarium between the two considered one of them, hehe. The animal lover in me is like awwwwwwwww how undesirable, however the mommy in me needs to cry. That crying toddler area grow to be terrible, i'm unlikely to attempt to make you sense undesirable yet next time attempt some traps that seize the ratties without harming them. They make traps that have a tiny maze interior and you will peanut butter in there and the door closes while the set off is set off off via a rodent it is enormously plenty in the seize. ensure you don't get the electrical powered one, a number of those electrocute the rodent. sturdy luck!
Tit for Tat
2011-08-19 21:37:00 UTC
Very dangerous. The hantavirus is spread through such droppings, and can be inhaled by cleaning or just around the droppings. You can die from this, a baby would be much more likely to



Salmonella (People can be infected if they do not wash their hands after contact with rodent droppings or if food, drink or eating utensils are contaminated with rodent feces.)



Leptospirosis(People can become infected through contact with water, food, or soil containing urine from an infected animal. It is uncommon in the US)



Plague(you know that one that wiped out europe? It is still possible to contact it)



Lymphocytic choriomeningitis ( a viral infection that can be found in wild rodents, primarily the common house mouse)



Rat Bite Fever (you can get this trough droppings)



"Rodents can cause illness in people and pets through bites and direct contact with urine, droppings and water contaminated with rodent urine. In addition, rodents can cause disease by contaminating food, drink and eating utensils with urine or droppings. Inhaling dust from dried rodent urine, feces and nesting material can also result in illness. Pregnant women, children, the elderly and those who are immunocompromised should be particularly careful to protect themselves from rodent carried illnesses"
Moi
2011-08-19 21:27:14 UTC
Yes it can make them sick, and you as well. You should call in a professional to remove the mice and then a cleaning service to get rid of all the droppings.
The Brat Princess
2011-08-19 21:31:38 UTC
Yes they carry bacteria and disease. Get a professional, you may have to stay in a house overnight while the house is exterminated, good luck! And congrats! =)


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
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