What to do if you have a dead animal in the chimney.

• Cause of death in the chimney

It is not so common for an animal to die in the chimney but it does happen in some instances. An animal an die in the chimney in the case where an animal say a raccoon gets inside a chimney but unfortunately unable to climb out. These especially happens if the chimney has slick metal flues as opposed to ones made of bricks. It may also happen when such an animal brings in its young ones in the chimney and fails to return for them. They die their especially owing to the fact that the mortality rates of the young one tend to be higher. So what should one do if the animal dies in your chimney?

• In the case where the animal is accessible.

Removing the animal is certainly the best decision. The presence of the dead animal is normally the main cause of the smell therefore removing of it just goes to solving the problem. However, when removing this animal one must be careful to avoid transferring diseases. Ensure that you have your gloves on, plastic disposable ones should be the best. Ensure that you do not come into contact with the animal even with your gloves on. Wrap the animal in a bundle of newspaper of some old rag and put it inside a plastic bag. Dispose the carcass in a trash can that can be firmly covered away from predators.

• After removing the animal.

The next thing that comes after removing the carcass is cleaning up. As much as the animal may have been removed, the smell will still be there and cleaning up the area is what needs to be done to get rid of this smell. You could start by mopping any fluids by the animal as well as the maggots and removing anything that may have been soiled by the fluids. After wards, spray the area with some airfreshner or even better still enzyme based cleaners. Ensure proper ventilation for good air circulation as this goes along way with doing away with the smell.

• In the case where the chimney doesn’t allow access to the dead animal.

This must certainly not be something that one wants to be go through. In this case there is nothing much that one can do as the absolute solution will be waiting till the dead animal becomes a mummy. However, even as you wait for this time, there are a number of things you could do. Ensuring that your house is always ventilated is one. Also regular spraying airfreshners or other home deodorants could help. What to do if you have a dead animal in the chimney.