Millions of dollars of damage is done to US homes by squirrels every year. Animals like squirrels, raccoons, and possums might seem like cute mammals that it’s fun to have around. In reality, though, you don’t want to have creatures hanging around your house and certainly not inside your home.
Let’s take a look at what you need to know about how to get rid of squirrels in the attic and other pressing questions regarding wildlife trapping.
Why It’s Important to Keep Squirrels Away From Your Home
It is always unsettling to hear scratching, bumping, or thumping noises coming from your walls or your attic. If you are hearing these noises at night, it is most likely rats or mice that is causing the commotion. If you are hearing noises during the day, however, it’s possible that the noises are being caused by a squirrel in your home.
There are some other ways to know if there is a squirrel in your house. You might notice holes along your roofline, unpleasant smells in the attic(squirrel droppings), a nest in the attic, or tiny footprints left in areas with dust.
Even though the squirrels are small and cute, it is not usually a good idea to try and find the creature yourself. This is because any wild animal can be dangerous particularly if they are feeling cornered or threatened. This is also true if they are protecting their young.
It is not a good idea to ignore this problem, as squirrels are capable of causing damage in a number of different ways. These include:
- Damage caused by chewing, including on electrical wires which can start house fires
- Loss of heat and insulation through the hole that your squirrel entered through
- Squirrels can carry a host of diseases, parasites, and illnesses that you do not want your home
If you suspect that there is a squirrel in your home, it is best to call a professional. This is not the type of situation that you want to be dealing with on your own.
Why It’s Important to Keep Possums Away From Your Home
Possums can actually be very helpful in a number of ways. They eat insects that are home full and help to clear out garbage.
That being said, there are a number of reasons why you might not want possums around your home. The biggest concern most people have is about diseases. There are certain diseases that possums can carry, however, it is important to know that rabies is likely not one of them.
The diseases that you might worry about possums carrying include toxoplasmosis, spotted fever, tularemia, relapsing fever, leptospirosis, tuberculosis, coccidiosis, Chagas disease, and trichomoniasis. It is also possible for possums to carry tics, lights, mites, and fleets. In urban environments, possums are hosts for dog and cat fleas.
There are ways to prevent possums from hanging around your home. Some of these include:
- Making sure that you never leave trash or pet food outside at night
- Pick your garden crops and fruit when they are ripe and don’t leave crops or fruit that is rotten the ground
- Secure any pet doors you have at night so that they cannot enter your house this way
- get rid of any holes under concrete slabs, brush piles, and dilapidated buildings as these are ideal places for possums to reside
If you have a possum that you need to remove from your home, it’s best to call a professional. While they aren’t as harmful as other creatures hanging around outside your house, their understandable reasons why people might want them removed.
Why It’s Important to Keep Raccoons Away From Your Home
many people do not think it is a big deal for a raccoon to be hanging around outside their house. Many people even find raccoons to be cute and fascinating animals. While this may be true, there are some risks associated with raccoons in your yard and around your house.
One of the reasons that it is dangerous to have raccoons hanging around your house is that they can carry diseases that are harmful to humans. Raccoons can have rabies, however, this is quite rare. The risk of a raccoon has great deeds is heightened if you notice a raccoon wandering around during the day.
Other diseases that raccoons might carry include roundworms and leptospirosis.
Raccoons have also been known to attack family pets. They have even been known to kill cats in smaller dogs. In very rare occurrences, it has even happened that raccoons have attacked people.
Another reason to be wary of raccoons hanging around your house is that they like to nest in basements or attics. If they choose to nest inside your home, they will urinate right outside the nest which can cause damage that is expensive to fix. They will also dig up your gardens in search of food.
How to Get Rid of Squirrels in the Attic
If you have squirrels in your attic, your number one question is probably how to give rid of them.
The first thing that you want to do is to find all of the entry points that’s growth could be getting through around your house. Then you will need to seal up all of the entry points except for one. It’s important to understand the squirrels can fit through just about any opening that they can find in your house, so it’s important to make sure that your windows and doors are properly fitted to your home.
Open vents and chimney tops can be covered with wire mesh and other openings can be filled with caulk, fuel, or other appropriate materials.
The entry point that you leave open should be the most accessible and obvious one. You want to cover this entry point with just one sheet of newspaper. This way you’ll be able to tell if there is still a squirrel entering and exiting your attic.
After a couple days, if the newspaper is still intact and you no longer hear signs of the presence of squirrels, you can then seal off the last entry point for good.
If the sheet of newspaper identifies that there is in fact still squirrel activity in your attic, the next step is to incentivize the squirrels to leave. Sometimes girls need a little bit of encouragement, this is particularly true if they have rabies.
You can keep the lights on or play loud music in order to try and drive squirrels out. You should not spend time in the attic if you know that there is squirrels up there. You could end up spooking the squirrel and it could end up in another part of your house, causing even more damage.
It is also common for people to use the product known as the Victor strobe light. The strobe light can get rid of raccoons, squirrels, possums, roof rats, bobcats, and other wildlife that might be inhabiting your crawlspaces and attics.
Another way people cover the squirrels in their attic is with traps. Wildlife removal is a tricky business, however, and it can make sense to hire wildlife removal services.
Raccoon, Possum, and Squirrel Removal Cost
The cost of getting rid of the wild animal will depend on where you live and what type of animal you’re having a problem with. The average cost of removing a wild animal is between $350 and $650.
To get rid of the squirrel in the attic, it generally cost between $350 and $600. If you have a particularly large investigation, however, it can cost something like $1500.
On average, it cost between $350 and $600 to trap and relocate a raccoon.
The average cost for possum control is between $250 and $500.
Squirrel Removal Near Me: Synergy2 Local Wildlife Removal
There’s a big difference between noticing wildlife out in the wild, frolicking amongst the fields and forests of Mississippi, and a wild animal that is causing damage to the structure of your house. At that point, you are likely pretty fixated on how to get ready and the attic.
The most common wildlife past in the state of Mississippi are raccoons, possums, and squirrels. Between the damage that they can cause to your home, strange noises you might hear through the night, their potential for carrying diseases and pests, and the potential that they will mess up your yard, it makes sense to deal with these problems with sleep.
When you call Synergy2 local wildlife removal services, we will be able to trap the animal quickly and effectively in order to put them back in the wild where they should be. We’ve got nothing against the little critters, but they’ve got no business hanging around your home.
Do you have a creature that’s taken up residence in your home? If so, contact us today for effective and efficient wildlife removal.
If you want to know more about wildlife trapping, or need pest control services in your Jackson, MS home or business please visit our site at https://synergy2ms.com. Feel free to read more about us and decide if Synergy² is the right company for you. We have over 350 Five-Star Google reviews for pest control service in the Jackson metro area (Jackson/Madison/Brandon/Ridgeland). Check out our newest location reviews for pest control service in Jackson, MS here!