Rodents may leave droppings, urine, gnaw marks and nesting material before tenants ever see a live animal. Evidence should show where rodents travel and how they may be entering the building.

Your goal is not to create dramatic evidence. Your goal is to create believable evidence showing what happened, where it happened, when it happened, how often it happened, and when the landlord was told.

Document safely first

CDC advises against sweeping or vacuuming dry rodent urine, droppings or nesting material because contaminated particles can become airborne.

Capture the condition clearly

  1. Start wide. Take one photo that identifies the room, wall, fixture, doorway, appliance, common area or other location.
  2. Move closer. Take medium and close images showing the specific defect. Use a ruler, thermometer, clock, work-order screen or other ordinary reference only when it helps explain the condition.
  3. Use video for movement, sound or recurrence. Leaks, flickering, pests, failed locks, alarms and repeated system failures are often easier to understand on a short video than in a still photo.
  4. Photograph droppings and gnaw marks before cleanup and show their location in the room.
  5. Use traps or monitoring devices only in a safe manner and photograph repeated captures if you choose to use them.
  6. Log scratching sounds, sightings and fresh droppings by date and room.
  7. Do not sweep or vacuum dry rodent droppings just to stage a cleaner photo; follow CDC cleanup guidance.
  8. Send written notice. State the problem, exact location, when it began, whether it is getting worse, and what repair or action you are requesting. Save proof of delivery.
  9. Build one timeline. Put photos, work orders, management replies, inspection dates, receipts and third-party reports in date order. That timeline can become the backbone of a code complaint, legal-aid intake or RentalFacts listing.

Make your evidence harder to attack

Keep the affected area reasonably clean when cleanliness is relevant to the dispute. Do not stage damage, exaggerate symptoms, edit images in a misleading way, or provoke a neighbor or employee just to get a reaction on camera. Preserve original files whenever possible.

RentalFacts tip: A strong public report should separate what you personally observed from what an inspector, technician, doctor, neighbor or government agency reported.