Reddit mentions: The best small animal odor & stain removers

Did you use an enzymatic cleaner? I've had really good success with this one: https://www.amazon.com/Mister-Max-Original-Remover-Gallon/dp/B000I6NF6W

I just want to second what u/xanaxiss mentioned. It starts with the food. I feed my pair Wysong and put this in their water daily. You can't smell them unless you pick them up and hold them 6" from your face.

And if you drizzle this stuff on their food they will eat anything. Sawdust. Broken glass. Doesn't matter. Ferret crack right there.

Oh, and don't try to clean the ferret. They just make more oil the more you bathe them. Put a ton of bedding in their cage. At least a few different kinds of hammock. I also throw in a wadded up blanket or two. (Go buy fleece fabric remnants at a fabric store. Super cheap.) They rub the oil from their coat off onto the bedding and they stay clean. Wash the bedding at least once a week on hot with bleach, add vinegar to the rinse water like fabric softener. Bathe no more than once a month with a ferret specific shampoo. In between you can hit them with a freshening spray if desired.

We use this for our two ferrets.
We just add 3 pumps to their water bottle before filling it up. Makes a huge difference (figured that out for sure when we ran out of it for a week). They don't smell much and our apartment certainly doesn't. This has been confirmed by people who were ready to hate them before we even got them because of smell. But yeah I don't think you can keep ferrets outside.

Then I recommend this. https://www.amazon.com/Kaytee-Clean-Cage-Safe-Deodorizer/dp/B000HHLSAW/ref=sxts_sxwds-bia?keywords=Cage+clean&pd_rd_i=B000HHLSAW&pd_rd_r=0da7b4aa-3665-41a1-af31-5a8e2da2bce0&pd_rd_w=0fAQD&pd_rd_wg=cPJVF&pf_rd_p=f0479f98-a32d-45cd-9c12-7aaced42b1ec&pf_rd_r=B01KACSWFYHGDMQY3E56&qid=1559046425&s=gateway and this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KU18NHK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_image?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I had a box in every room, that helped some but it was still a 90% success rate. They're lazy fuckers.

You're right about the cancer too, it's honestly best to consider that their lifespan. It's sad.

EDIT: Oh I did have some success containing the musky smell with this.

Anti-Icky-Poo works much better than anything I've ever used on any pee or poop stain. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000I6NF6W

In all seriousness, if your cat or dog pees and you need the sink to stop, use this.

This gets out every smell that there ever was anywhere, even raccoon piss that soaked into concrete.