Key points
- Hantaviruses are a family of viruses which can cause serious illness and death.
- You can get hantavirus from infected rodents or their droppings.
- Avoiding exposure to rodents and their urine and feces is the best way to prevent infection.
- When cleaning up after rodents, special steps should be taken to avoid exposure.
Exposure
Hantaviruses can cause serious illness that affects your lungs and kidneys. Hantaviruses are spread from rodents to people.
When fresh urine, droppings, or nesting materials of an infected rodent are stirred up, the virus can get into the air. You can become infected with the virus by breathing in the contaminated air. The virus can also spread when saliva, urine, or feces from an infected animal gets into cuts in a person's skin or their eyes, nose, or mouth.
What increases your risk
People should avoid contact with rodent urine, droppings, saliva, and nesting materials. If mice or rats are in or around your home, it's important to clean up after them safely.
Pet rodents, including pet rats, are not recommended for families with children 5-years old or younger, pregnant women, or people with weakened immune systems; they are at a greater risk of serious illness.
Who is at risk
People who handle and clean up after rodents, such as pest exterminators and animal caretakers, are at higher risk of hantavirus exposure and should take precautions. People who work with live rodents or have rodents as pets can be exposed to hantaviruses through rodent bites or from touching the saliva, urine, droppings, or contaminated bedding from infected animals.
Prevention steps and strategies
People should avoid contact with rodent urine, droppings, saliva, and nesting materials. If mice or rats are in or around your home, it's important to clean up after them safely.
Rodent control is the primary strategy for preventing hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), a disease caused by infection with certain hantaviruses. Wild rodents near human populations should be controlled and excluded from homes.
Safely caring for pet rats can help prevent hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, a disease caused by infection with certain hantaviruses. Pet owners can consult their veterinarians about testing new rats for hantaviruses before they are introduced into new homes, especially if they will be living with other rats in a home or breeding facility. Keep wild rats (which naturally carry hantavirus) away from pet rats by taking steps to prevent rodent infestations.
Cleaning up after rodents
Instructions for how to stay healthy and safely care for a pet rodent are found here.
If you have mice or rats in or around your home or vehicle, it's important to clean up all urine, droppings (poop), dead rodents, and nesting materials safely to protect your health. Instructions for how to safely clean up after rodents are found here.
Different protective gear is recommended for people who have rodents as pets versus people who clean up after heavy rodent infestations. Find out what materials and supplies you need to for safe cleaning practices for all situations.
- For more information about Seoul virus, read Veterinary Guidance for Testing for Seoul Virus in Pet Rats.
- For recommendations on safe handling of pet rodents, read Small Mammals.
- For recommendations on rodents used for pet food, read Reptiles and Amphibians.