Mobile homes and dead things
Living in a trailer is a weird experience. I guess, especially since I do live in tornado country, I should be more scared than I am, but that's not something I've really been too worried about. Flooding is never an issue because, at least one side of my trailer is at least 4 ft off the ground (the other is less than 2 thanks to the slope of the park I live in). I'm not a fan of trailer park life because of the kind of neighbors I sometimes end up with thanks to the rentals that are out there. When it was all homeowners, it was a completely different experience. It goes through good and bad phases though. Sometimes the cops are out there all the time, other times all is quiet.
But because skirting around the base is strange and there are pipes running in and out in places, animals like to get under my house, especially cats. They fight, they mate, they give birth and, worst of all, they die.
Have you ever had a mouse die in your walls and it smells up your house for a week or so? Imagine that smell times 10 for three weeks instead of one. That's a rotting cat. Every couple of years, I have to deal with this smell and I've recently been dealing with it for 7 (yes, that is seven) weeks. Normally, I would just call the city and they would have animal control come out and get it, but this time, I was told that the city would no longer come to the trailer park and it would be my responsibility to deal with it. I work in a lab and can deal with dead people and body parts all day...animals (even cats), not so much.
A couple of weeks ago, as I was taking Bam to the vet for his routine check up, I saw a cat dragging a dead road kill cat (it was obvious what it was) across my yard. I hissed the cat away, put Bam in the car, and went back inside to get stuff to deal with the dead cat (I wasn't sure I could do it, but I was gonna try). As I came back out of the house, supplies in hand, the dead cat head was disappearing underneath my house! I did not know that cats were cannibals, but apparently, this demon is. I've been trying to keep him away, but to no avail. Everyone has an opinion on cat repellent and none of them has worked so far, but last week, I saw a dead cat in the road that looked a lot like this demon cat and I haven't seen him around the house, so maybe he finally got his.
One weekend, I made the mistake of using a cinnamon smell in all my Scentsy burners (12 in all), and then the entire house ended up smelling like a dead man with a pack of cinnamon gummy bears in his pocket which, ironically, was even worse than just the dead smell. I started to think maybe a human was actually under my house, rotting away because the smell seemed to be getting stronger. I tend to collect cans of Febreeze and I've used almost every single one up. Nothing is working.
I should also say, there is no way in Hades I would EVER crawl up under my trailer. I'm too fat, too scared of bugs, and I don't want to see any dead things (or partially dead things, or live things). I did look under the trailer, but I saw nothing, so I called myself doing my due diligence, and let it go (don't sing it...sorry). I was going to have to live with the smell until it decomposed.
It got so bad, Bam and Bugs wouldn't even go in that end of the house. It's a good thing we sleep on the couch, because my bedroom has been pretty much off limits. I still get ready in my bathroom, but there have been no long baths for a while now. My other tub isn't big enough for that "relaxing soak", so it just sits there, gathering dust.
The air conditioner guys were so put off by the smell in my house, they worked on air motor outside. The kid that worked with the main guy offered to come back and remove the dead animal for me because, and this is his words, "no one should have to live like this". So last night, he came by and crawled under my house. He removed two dead cats, four squirrels, a rat, and a possum, all in various stages of decomp. He left the bone pile of already eaten animals. This cat really was Satanic!
That kid deserved the $100 I gave him. He left a vent hole open on both sides of my skirting so it can air out and he said he'd come back and fix it. I hope he does because I know nothing about that stupid skirting (although I probably could figure it out). He's also gonna come back and do some other work for me as well. I'm leery of strangers, but this kid seems OK (and I do know where he works and his mother-in-law is the trailer park manager, so I know where to go if he does something bad).
Needless to say, the smell has permeated every square inch of my house and I don't have any clue how long it will take before it's completely gone. Hopefully though, no fresh kills will find their way under my house, at least for a while! If they do, it's gonna be a LONG summer!
But because skirting around the base is strange and there are pipes running in and out in places, animals like to get under my house, especially cats. They fight, they mate, they give birth and, worst of all, they die.
Have you ever had a mouse die in your walls and it smells up your house for a week or so? Imagine that smell times 10 for three weeks instead of one. That's a rotting cat. Every couple of years, I have to deal with this smell and I've recently been dealing with it for 7 (yes, that is seven) weeks. Normally, I would just call the city and they would have animal control come out and get it, but this time, I was told that the city would no longer come to the trailer park and it would be my responsibility to deal with it. I work in a lab and can deal with dead people and body parts all day...animals (even cats), not so much.
A couple of weeks ago, as I was taking Bam to the vet for his routine check up, I saw a cat dragging a dead road kill cat (it was obvious what it was) across my yard. I hissed the cat away, put Bam in the car, and went back inside to get stuff to deal with the dead cat (I wasn't sure I could do it, but I was gonna try). As I came back out of the house, supplies in hand, the dead cat head was disappearing underneath my house! I did not know that cats were cannibals, but apparently, this demon is. I've been trying to keep him away, but to no avail. Everyone has an opinion on cat repellent and none of them has worked so far, but last week, I saw a dead cat in the road that looked a lot like this demon cat and I haven't seen him around the house, so maybe he finally got his.
One weekend, I made the mistake of using a cinnamon smell in all my Scentsy burners (12 in all), and then the entire house ended up smelling like a dead man with a pack of cinnamon gummy bears in his pocket which, ironically, was even worse than just the dead smell. I started to think maybe a human was actually under my house, rotting away because the smell seemed to be getting stronger. I tend to collect cans of Febreeze and I've used almost every single one up. Nothing is working.
I should also say, there is no way in Hades I would EVER crawl up under my trailer. I'm too fat, too scared of bugs, and I don't want to see any dead things (or partially dead things, or live things). I did look under the trailer, but I saw nothing, so I called myself doing my due diligence, and let it go (don't sing it...sorry). I was going to have to live with the smell until it decomposed.
It got so bad, Bam and Bugs wouldn't even go in that end of the house. It's a good thing we sleep on the couch, because my bedroom has been pretty much off limits. I still get ready in my bathroom, but there have been no long baths for a while now. My other tub isn't big enough for that "relaxing soak", so it just sits there, gathering dust.
The air conditioner guys were so put off by the smell in my house, they worked on air motor outside. The kid that worked with the main guy offered to come back and remove the dead animal for me because, and this is his words, "no one should have to live like this". So last night, he came by and crawled under my house. He removed two dead cats, four squirrels, a rat, and a possum, all in various stages of decomp. He left the bone pile of already eaten animals. This cat really was Satanic!
That kid deserved the $100 I gave him. He left a vent hole open on both sides of my skirting so it can air out and he said he'd come back and fix it. I hope he does because I know nothing about that stupid skirting (although I probably could figure it out). He's also gonna come back and do some other work for me as well. I'm leery of strangers, but this kid seems OK (and I do know where he works and his mother-in-law is the trailer park manager, so I know where to go if he does something bad).
Needless to say, the smell has permeated every square inch of my house and I don't have any clue how long it will take before it's completely gone. Hopefully though, no fresh kills will find their way under my house, at least for a while! If they do, it's gonna be a LONG summer!
Comments
your air conditioner will do this too.
Linda
I'm not usually one to wish bad things on people, yet alone animals, but if that demon cat stays away from your house from now on, that surely is a good thing. Also good you found someone willing to help!
When my son was little we saw a lot of road kill on the walk to school. He used to count them and said he was going to draw them and make a counting book of My Dead Things. Nice child...