A Story From the Field: Phum's Pet Room Behind the House

Khun Wichai lives in a single-storey house, built only slightly above ground level, down a soi in Thung Khru with his wife and their thirteen-year-old son, Phum, who has loved animals since he was small. The little room off the kitchen at the back of the house became Phum's pet room. It holds two aquariums, one with goldfish and one with guppies Phum breeds himself, a wooden rabbit hutch, two hamster cages, a plastic turtle tub, and shelves stacked with pet food, bags of hay and wood shavings for bedding.

When heavy rain kept falling and water started to come into the soi, the electricity went off before the water reached the house. The air pumps and filters in the aquariums stopped. Phum and his father scooped the fish into buckets with battery-powered aerators and carried them to a high table at a relative's house. The rabbit, the hamsters and the turtle went along in travel boxes. The tanks, the wooden hutch and everything else in the room had to stay behind. Water rose almost to knee height in the pet room and stayed for several days.

When the family came back to check on the house, the pet room smelled of stagnant water, rotting hay and heavy mustiness. The hay and shavings that had been underwater had turned into black, sodden lumps. The wooden hutch had white and green mold on its legs and floor. The water left in the tanks had turned cloudy green. The drip trays under the cages and the turtle tub held standing water that already had mosquito larvae wriggling in it. Along the bottom of the walls ran a line of water stains and mold.

Phum wanted every animal home as soon as possible, because there was not enough room at his relative's house. But Khun Wichai worried that a room full of mold, floodwater germs and such a strong smell would make the animals sick. He also did not know whether disinfection or ozone treatment could ever be safe for pets.

Why a Pet Room Is Riskier Than an Ordinary Room After a Flood

• It is full of organic material. Hay, wood shavings, pet food and droppings that sat in floodwater are food for mold and a breeding ground for germs.
• Wooden hutches and shelves soak up water. Timber hutches and shelving absorb moisture and mud into the wood, so mold grows quickly and smells linger.
• Water stands in tanks, trays and tubs. Once the power is off, nothing circulates. The water goes stale and becomes a breeding site for mosquitoes.
• Pet rooms are often at the back of the house with little ventilation. Rooms off the kitchen or storerooms tend to have few windows, so humidity and smells stay for a long time.
• Small animals are sensitive to air quality. Rabbits, hamsters, birds and other small pets have airways that are easily irritated by dust, mold and strong fumes.
• Fish and turtles are sensitive to chemicals in water. Droplets or gases settling into aquarium water can be harmful to aquatic animals.

All of this means a pet room cannot simply be mopped and refilled. The animals, the equipment and the room each need their own plan, and the animals must always come first.

The Effects on People and Animals

Human health. Cleaning a room where droppings, rotten hay and floodwater have mixed together carries risks of skin infections, diarrhoeal illness and leptospirosis, especially if anyone has cuts on their hands or feet. Mold spores and musty air can also trigger allergies and asthma. Children can help with safe tasks, but only while wearing gloves, boots and a mask, and adults should handle the dirtiest jobs.

Animal health. Animals brought back into a room that is still damp and moldy may start sneezing, develop a runny nose, lose fur or become ill. Any pet that seems lethargic, stops eating or behaves unusually after the flood should be seen by a vet.

Mosquitoes and insects. Standing water in trays, tubs and unused tanks breeds mosquitoes, increasing the risk of mosquito-borne illness for the whole family.

A child's peace of mind. For a child attached to their animals, weeks apart from them is hard. A clear plan for when the animals can come home makes a real difference to the whole family's mood.

Rule Number One: Every Animal Leaves the Room Before Work Begins

Every animal must be out of the treatment area for the whole of the disinfection and ozone work. That includes fish, turtles, rabbits, hamsters, birds and any other pets, as well as dogs and cats that might wander through. The WHD team looks after the room. The animals' health is the vet's responsibility, and aquarium systems are best handled with advice from an aquarium shop or aquatic specialist.

What the family should prepare

• Move the fish into a temporary tank or tub with an aerator, well away from the room being treated, following the aquarium shop's advice.
• Board the rabbit, hamsters, turtle and other small animals with relatives, at a vet clinic or another temporary home during the work.
• If any animal shows signs of illness, take it to a vet before it comes home.
• Wear gloves, boots and a mask while clearing out the pet room.
• Throw away all hay, shavings and pet food that touched the floodwater. Do not reuse them.
• Empty standing water from trays, tubs and unused tanks to break the mosquito breeding cycle.

What you should not do

• Do not bring animals back as soon as the water drains, even if the floor looks dry.
• Do not spray disinfectant or bleach in the room while animals, or tanks with fish, are still inside.
• Do not use perfume or air freshener to mask smells in a pet room.
• Do not wash filters and aquarium equipment with household cleaners without asking an aquarium shop first.

Finding a Temporary Home for Each Kind of Animal

Different animals need different temporary arrangements while their room is being restored. A little planning keeps them comfortable and lowers their stress.

• Fish. A clean temporary tank or large tub with an aerator, kept somewhere shaded and stable. Ask the aquarium shop about water conditioning and how much to feed while the fish are in a smaller space. Avoid placing the temporary tank anywhere near the room that is being treated.
• Turtles. A secure tub with clean water and a dry basking spot, out of reach of other pets.
• Rabbits and guinea pigs. A clean carrier or temporary pen with fresh bedding and hay that was never in the floodwater, in a quiet, well-ventilated place.
• Hamsters and other small rodents. A clean cage with fresh bedding, kept away from drafts, direct sun and loud noise.
• Birds. A cage in a calm room with good, gentle airflow and no fumes from cooking or cleaning products.

If relatives cannot take the animals, a vet clinic or a pet boarding service may be able to help for a few days. Tell them the animals have come from a flood-affected home so they can keep an eye on their health.

A Practical Order of Work for the First Week

1. Day one: make sure every animal is safe elsewhere, switch off power to the room, and photograph the damage.
2. Days one and two: bag and throw away soaked hay, shavings and food. Empty standing water from tanks, trays and tubs.
3. Days two and three: decide which cages and hutches to keep. Ask the aquarium shop how to clean the tanks, filters and pumps.
4. Days two to five: remove mud, clean the floor and walls, and let the room dry with doors and windows open on dry days.
5. Once the room is clean: book a survey for disinfection fogging and ozone treatment.
6. After treatment and extra ventilation: set the room up again with better airflow, then bring the animals home one group at a time and watch them closely.

Why the Usual Fixes Fall Short in a Pet Room

• Washing the floor and bringing the animals straight back. A floor that looks clean can still leave spores and germs on the walls, in corners and inside wooden hutches.
• Pouring bleach around the room. Strong fumes in a closed room are dangerous for both people and animals, and bleach does not reach mold inside the wood.
• Burning incense or spraying deodoriser. Strong scents can irritate small animals' airways, and they do nothing about the source of the smell.
• Running fans all day. Fans speed drying, but they blow spores through the house and into the rooms where animals may be staying temporarily.
• Reusing the old wooden hutch without checking it. Wood with deep mold or rot usually needs replacing, otherwise the animal lives on top of a source of mold all day.

The Solution: WHD Restores the Pet Room With Disinfection Fogging and Ozone

Once every animal is out of the area, the aquariums have been moved out or emptied on the aquarium shop's advice, and everything that touched the floodwater has been thrown away, the pet room is ready for WHD's disinfection service and ozone treatment service.

Disinfection fogging uses CHEMGENE HLD4H through an ultra-low-volume (ULV) fogger. The fine mist reaches walls, floor, corners, shelves and the spots where cages used to stand, reducing germs from floodwater and droppings on surfaces.

Ozone treatment uses a professional ozone generator in the sealed room. It helps deal with mold spores in the air and on surfaces and breaks down stagnant-water and musty odors, without the perfumes that are unsuitable for pets.

Our step-by-step process for a pet room

1. Site survey. We check the flood line, visible mold, the condition of cages and shelves, walls, floor and any standing water.
2. Confirming every animal is out. Together with the family, we confirm there are no animals, no tanks with fish and no tubs with turtles in the room or nearby areas.
3. Clean-up advice. We advise on discarding soaked hay, shavings and food, emptying standing water, removing mud and drying the room.
4. Disinfection fogging. We fog the walls, floor, shelves and every hidden corner.
5. Ozone treatment. We seal the room and treat it at a controlled dose and duration for its size. Electronics such as aquarium air pumps and heaters are removed or covered.
6. Ventilation. Doors and windows are opened and the room is ventilated thoroughly before people re-enter, with extra time allowed before animals return.
7. Re-check. We check the smell and former mold spots and suggest ways to lay out the room with better airflow before the animals come home.

10 Reasons to Disinfect and Ozone-Treat a Pet Room After a Flood

1. It reduces germs from floodwater and droppings on surfaces, through our disinfection service.
2. It reduces mold spores in the air before air-sensitive animals return, with our ozone treatment service.
3. It breaks down stagnant-water and rotten-hay smells at the source, without perfume.
4. Fine mist reaches corners and the spots where cages stood, which are hard to wipe.
5. The work follows a clear order: animals out first, room treated afterwards, every time.
6. It helps pets come home sooner to a room that is cleaner than before.
7. It uses CHEMGENE HLD4H for surface disinfection.
8. It lowers health risks for children who care for the animals every day.
9. It stops smells spreading from the pet room into the kitchen and other rooms.
10. It pairs well with our mosquito spraying service around the house to cut down mosquitoes breeding in post-flood standing water.

Setting Up a Healthier Pet Room for the Future

Rebuilding the pet room is a chance to make it easier to keep clean and safer in the next flood.

• Raise cages, hutches and tank stands off the floor where possible, and choose easy-to-clean materials such as metal or sealed plastic for the parts that touch the floor.
• Keep hay, bedding and food in sealed containers on high shelves.
• Leave space between cages and the wall so air can move and corners can be cleaned.
• Empty drip trays daily and change turtle water on a regular schedule.
• Keep battery-powered aerators, travel boxes and a few days of food ready, with a simple plan for who moves which animal if water rises again.

Bringing the Animals Home: A Gentle Return

When the room has been treated, ventilated and re-checked, the return of the animals deserves the same care as the clean-up. Start with one enclosure at a time rather than moving everyone back on the same afternoon. Set up the aquarium first and let the filter run until the water is stable, following the advice of your aquarium shop, before adding fish. Put fresh, dry bedding and new hay into hutches and cages, and give small animals a quiet corner while they settle back in.

For the first few days, keep the windows open when the weather allows and stay in the room yourself for a while each day, noticing whether any musty smell comes back. Watch each animal for changes in appetite, breathing or behavior, and contact a veterinarian promptly if anything seems wrong. Keep the travel boxes and temporary tank clean and stored nearby, so you are ready if heavy rain returns. A careful, step-by-step homecoming helps pets and their owners feel safe in the room again.

It also helps to keep a simple notebook for the first two weeks. Write down when each animal returned, what was changed in its enclosure, how it is eating, and any smell or damp patch you notice in the room. If something goes wrong, you and your veterinarian or aquarium shop will have a clear record to work from, and you will know whether the problem started with the room, the water or the animal itself. Families who keep these notes often find that they also become much better at noticing small problems early, long before the next rainy season arrives.

A Word From the Family

"At first my son wanted to bring all the animals back the moment we finished washing the floor. The team explained that every animal had to be out while they worked, and that we should allow extra time for ventilation before bringing them home. So the rabbit stayed with relatives and the fish went into a temporary tank, as the aquarium shop suggested. The room doesn't smell any more, and my son is setting it up again with much better airflow."

— Khun Wichai (a story from the field), Thung Khru

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can fish stay in their tank in the room during disinfection and ozone treatment?
A: No. Every animal, including fish in tanks and turtles in tubs, must be moved out of the area before work begins. Ask an aquarium shop about a suitable temporary tank.

Q: Can the animals come back straight after ozone treatment?
A: The room must be properly ventilated first, and it is wise to allow extra time before small animals return. Our team will recommend a suitable waiting time after the re-check.

Q: Will WHD treat the cages or aquariums as well?
A: Our team treats the room and its surfaces. Empty cages that the family has cleaned and decided to keep can stay in the room during treatment if the team agrees. Tanks, filters and pumps should be cleaned following the aquarium shop's advice.

Q: What should we do with a moldy wooden rabbit hutch?
A: If the wood is rotten or the mold is deep, replace the hutch, because rabbits chew wood and spend all day close to the floor of the hutch. If the wood is still sound, clean it and let it dry completely first.

Q: Our pet seems lethargic after the flood. What should we do?
A: Take it to a vet as soon as possible. Animals can pick up infections from floodwater and can also be stressed by moving home.

Q: How do we prevent mosquitoes in the pet room?
A: Empty standing water from trays and containers every day, change turtle water regularly, and consider mosquito spraying around the house in the weeks after the flood.

Q: Do you serve areas near Thung Khru?
A: Yes. Send us your location and a short description of the room, and we will arrange a survey for Thung Khru and nearby districts.

Get the Room Ready Before Your Pets Come Home

Talk to the WHD team about disinfection fogging and ozone treatment for your pet room, aquarium room or pet supply storage in Thung Khru and nearby areas.

See Disinfection Service – Click Here

Book Ozone Treatment – Click Here

Call 065-556-6294 · LINE @whd268 · Email worldhealthdisinfection@gmail.com

Related Links

• Mosquito spraying service
• Residential ozone disinfection
• Ozone odor and chemical residue removal
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Health reference: World Health Organization (WHO): Floods · Department of Disease Control, Thailand