Chances are you’ve seen a squirrel before — the bushy-tailed creatures are all over the United States and in Southwest Florida. They’re common, with 200 species worldwide, and their populations are quite robust, with mother squirrels often having multiple litters per year. Because they are so common, many homeowners have experienced the pitter-patter of squirrel feet and high-pitched noise of babies in their attic. While it might sound cute, squirrels can cause a significant amount of damage and should not be allowed to continue to live in your home. After all, squirrels are rodents. To help keep our customers informed, we’re going to provide you with some easy tips to get a squirrel out of your attic.
Determine How Many
If you just have one squirrel, possibly a mother attempting to make a nest and preparing for a litter, you’re in luck. Once a mother has a litter, you’ll need to remove the babies by hand because they won’t be moving around yet. If you leave them there, they can die, which can bring forth unpleasant smells, bacteria, and other bugs. If you aren’t sure whether you have a litter or just an adult, it may be worth a trip into the attic to look around. If that’s not up your alley, be sure to call your local wildlife control company like Miller’s Wildlife Services. This is a very common occurrence that can easily be handled by a professional.
Trapping and Removing
If you have an adult squirrel, you may want to set a trap. However, keep in mind that this may be difficult to do if you are inexperienced with setting traps. You will also need to frequently check your traps as you do not want the animal to get caught and suffer. Trapping takes some skill and you may need to set multiple traps in hopes of catching the squirrel. Typically, traps are the first step in squirrel control management.
What About Poison?
Although squirrels are rodents, rat poison typically won’t work as squirrels avoid it and we at Miller’s Wildlife Services never advise using poison (see our blog post on why poison is not a good option). You may use some repellents to prevent them from coming back, but sealing their entry is the best way to prevent them from inhabiting your home.
Moving Forward
If you’re confident that you have removed the squirrels, it’s imperative that you examine your entire home to see if there are any spots vulnerable to being penetrated by a squirrel. Seal any and all those spots to prevent squirrels from entering your home in the future. Additionally, if the squirrels were in your home for some time, you will likely want to decontaminate the area from their droppings and/or any remains.
Call in the Experts
If you try these tips, and you’ve still got a problem, or if this seems like too daunting of a task, be sure to give Miller’s Wildlife Services a call or Text at 941-302-6009. This is a very common problem that homeowners face. Because this is something that we regularly deal with, it’s not a problem for us to come out and help you solve the problem. We’ll also complete a Free inspection so that you don’t have this problem reoccur.
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