Category: Blog

Have You Heard of These 3 Top Myths about Raccoons?

1. Raccoons Only Carry Rabies

While raccoons are a primary reservoir for rabies, they also carry many other diseases that can be transmitted to humans, such as raccoon roundworm and leptospirosis. Raccoon roundworms are spread via airborne eggs excreted when the raccoon defecates. Humans can inhale these eggs and become immediately infected. Leptospirosis is transmitted to humans through a raccoon’s feces and urine. Both diseases may cause life-threatening symptoms in infected humans.

2. Raccoons Only Venture Out at Night

Like other wild animals, raccoons are opportunistic omnivores always searching for their next bite to eat. When food is plentiful during the summer, raccoons tend to forage mostly at night. During winter (raccoons do not hibernate), they will forage day and night for food. Also, they are not territorial. They will wander everywhere and anywhere to find food resources and especially like creeks and ponds.

3. Raccoons Make Great Pets

No, they don’t. Also harboring a range of diseases, raccoons are destructive, nearly untrainable (they ARE wild animals) and notorious biters. You cannot train a raccoon not to bite humans, dogs or cats, even if the raccoon is raised by humans from birth. Also, most veterinarians have no experience treating a sick or injured raccoon. Before a vet even looks at a raccoon, the person bringing in the animal must show proof they have purchased the raccoon. It is illegal to take raccoons from the wild, and you could be fined if wildlife officers find you have taken a raccoon as a pet.

What To Do If You Encounter a Raccoon

Never approach a raccoon if you find one in your home or on your property. They will instinctively bite when scared, stressed or angry. If your property is being overrun with raccoons or you discover a raccoon family is squatting in your attic, call Critter Control at 305-258-3587 for immediate assistance with raccoon removal services.

Nobody likes the thought of wild animals in their home. The idea that there are critters lurking somewhere in the house gives people chills. They leave frustrating messes behind and are difficult to track down. But sometimes they can pose even more irritating problems when they die in your house.

The most common areas of your home to find a decomposing animal body 

• ductwork
• behind drywall
• attics
• garages
• crawl space.

The most common animals in Miami

1. opossums
2. raccoons
3. skunks
4. mice
5. rats
6. squirrels

Obvious Signs of Dead Animal in House

• Wet Spots – As disgusting as it sounds, the decomposing body will begin to liquify. Over time, this wetness will begin to seep into the walls or ceiling, depending on where the body is located. This can obviously cause damage to the structure of the home.
• Flies – You’ve probably seen how flies flock to rotting things out in nature, whether it’s an old orange on the ground or roadkill. They get easy nutrients from stuff that is decomposing, and actually like to lay their eggs in rotting animals as well, since it provides plenty of food for maggots when they hatch. If you notice a sharp uptick in flies inside, there might be a dead animal somewhere.
• Smell – This is an undeniable, unavoidable consequence of a dead animal in your house. The odor will be so pungent and putrid that it’ll be impossible not to detect after a certain amount of time. As the body first begins to decompose, the smell may be localized and not as strong, but after a couple of days, it will become overpowering.

Dead Animal Odors

It does not take long (especially in warm weather) for an animal carcass to start decomposing. Bacteria consuming soft tissues excrete foul-smelling, sulfuric gasses that cause the dead animal to swell to sometimes three times its size. Bloating further forces fluids out of the animal’s orifices, which only increases the intensity of the smell and fluid seepage.

The quickest and easiest way to get rid of dead animal smell is to dispose of the dead animal carcass. When you find dead animals outside, the smell dissipates as soon as the carcass is removed. However, getting rid of strong odor of a dead animal that is decomposing inside your home is not so easy.

How to Get Rid of Dead Animal Smell

• Enzyme Cleaners--solutions containing enzymes can break down and dissolve molecules responsible for harboring dead animal smells and producing stains. Enzymes are non-toxic proteins that expedite chemical reactions necessary to break down odorous substances released by an animal’s decomposing body.
• Baking Soda--mix baking soda with water to make a paste that can be applied to areas where dead animals are decomposing. Allow the paste to dry before removing the residue.
• Bleach–using full-strength bleach to get rid of a dead animal smell will only work on certain solid surfaces that bleach won’t damage. Bleach does kill many kinds of microorganisms but it may only cover up an odor temporarily

Downside of Using Home Remedies to Eliminate Dead Animals Smells

If a dead animal decomposes inside walls, on insulation, dry wall, fabric or porous wood, you will probably need to remove and replace the items to completely remove the smell.

Dead animals may also leave behind infectious bacteria capable of spreading diseases to you and your family. Enzymatic cleaners, baking soda and even bleach may not completely eradicate disease-causing bacteria.

Instead of wasting your time and money on home remedies, call Critter Control for professional removal of dead animal smells. We use only industry-strength solutions formulated to eliminate persistent, dead animal odors. In addition, we will carefully inspect your home and yard to dispose of all dead animals and the odors they leave behind. Contact us today for immediate assistance.

You may be pleased to find a dead mouse or raccoon on your property – yay, pest problem solved! But it could be just the beginning of your problem. What to do with the carcass? Don’t even think about flushing it down the toilet. And you can’t just throw it in the trash in most parts of North America. Give it a decent burial? Even if your property is large, can you bury the carcass deep enough and securely enough to ensure it won’t be dug up by other vermin, or the neighbor’s dog? Times like these, it pays to call a professional with dead animal removal experience.

In case you’re skeptical, here is a brief (and we think, convincing) list of the major reasons homeowners should not take on the task of removing dead animals from around their property:

• Skilled diagnostics – a professional can often glean information about communicable disease (such as rabies) or other potential infestation issues by examining an animal carcass after death
• Disease – potentially deadly diseases such as tularemia and leptospirosis can be contracted by touching or even being in close proximity to an animal carcass. Professionals carry the necessary hazardous material equipment and safety gear to ensure these are not transmitted
• Special health risks – people with compromised immune systems, degenerative disease, or who may be pregnant should definitely not be exposing themselves to decomposing flesh of any kind
• Psychological distress – you may think you can handle it, but sensitive homeowners with a soft spot for animals (or who have small children hanging around) may prefer to avoid dealing with carcass removal for emotional reasons. That’s perfectly OK – call a pro
• There may be additional clean-up required – odors, stains, emissions, flies or maggots. Ask yourself if you also have the skills (and stomach!) necessary to deal with the aftermath once a carcass is removed
• Dumping is discouraged – most jurisdictions don’t allow carcasses to be disposed of through regular household waste collection programs. It may even be illegal in your town or county

Except in rare cases, animal carcass disposal should be handled by a professional. Critter Control will not only take care of your living pest problems; they can safely and expertly deal with carcass removal and the clean-up to follow. Do yourself a favor and call them today for all your pest and vermin removal needs.

If you currently have or recently had rats in your attic, you’ll have to deal with a clean-up at some point. After all, you don’t want to just leave animal feces up there with all your boxes and belongings! So how do you handle it?

Identify the Problem

Before figuring out how to handle the droppings in your attic, you might need to identify what the problem animal is and if you are still dealing with the infestation. Listen for squeaks or scurrying sounds, especially at night. The best option here is to have a professional come out and do a full inspection. You don’t want to have to do a bunch of clean up and replacement of materials if you have rats that are going to come back and destroy it again.

Assess Damage

Once you know the infestation is gone and you’ve prevented the animals from coming back, you’ll need to assess the severity of the damage. Any insulation that has been touched by the droppings is compromised and should be replaced. In addition, there may be urine and other damage from chewing and nesting to be handled. Rats tend to stay close to walls, so be sure to note whether there are any grease and dirt smudges along the outside that will need to be cleaned.

Precautions

We always urge you to use a professional for removal and restoration of your attic because it is necessary to handle it with proper care and expertise. Regardless of your experience, you should never touch rat droppings with bare hands. Wear gloves and face masks when going into the affected area and use the correct sanitizing tools. Often, you’ll have to replace your insulation as well, so ensure you are wearing correct protection from the fiberglass.

Best Option

If you’re dealing with rat droppings in your attic, just stay calm and give us a call at 305-258-3587. We’ll inspect your home and make a restoration plan as well as ensure you don’t have an infestation hanging around. Additionally, we’ll suggest any precautions you need to protect your home from future infestations.

Dealing with any type of rodent in your home is a cause for stress and frustration. You don’t know how long they’ve been there or how much damage they’ve done, and you may find yourself desperate to get rid of them by any means necessary.

However, the first thing you need to do before you ever try to handle a nuisance pest is take a breath and think logically about the method you choose.

Rodent Bait in Inhumane

No, do not use rat poison to get rid of squirrels.

The majority of rat poisons (rodenticides) are anti-coagulants mixed with other chemicals. The chemicals make the blood vessels weak and cause internal hemorrhaging. With the anticoagulant preventing the blood from clotting, the rodents die within one to two days. Another type of poison is a phosphide that reacts with stomach acid to create a toxic gas, killing the rodent usually within 2 days. A third is a calciferol. When ingested, calcification occurs on many organs in the body, and can take up to a week for the rodent to die. All three of these are very slow and painful processes for the rodent, and there are many better ways to go about handling a rodent problem.

Rat Poisons are Ineffective for Squirrels

While they are both in the Rodentia family, rats and squirrels have very different diets. Rats are very much creatures of opportunity, eating just about anything that’s available while focusing on high-protein items. Rat poison takes this into consideration and utilizes an attractant such as peanut butter, fish oil, or ground meat.

Squirrels, on the other hand, are not nearly as attracted to those smells. Squirrels eat tender leaf buds, wild fruits, nuts and acorns, bird eggs, seed crops, or even tree bark.. And, while squirrels may like peanut butter occasionally, they prefer full nuts. On the off chance the attractant does work, and a squirrel ingests the poison, you will be left with the strong odor of a dead squirrel carcass somewhere hidden in your home.

Rat Poison Dangerous to Small Children and Pets

Another problem with using any kind of poison in your home is when there are small children or other pets in the house. The pellets often look enticing to dogs as they often smell appetizing and can look similar to dry dog food. For young children, it is often a matter of curiosity. Children like to put things into their mouths, and you definitely don’t want a child ingesting poisons.

How to Get Rid of Squirrels

In short, the answer is no, you shouldn’t use poison on squirrels.

There are many other methods that are safer, more humane, and more effective. One-way doors and live traps are much more effective and humane than squirrel poisons. These methods don’t kill squirrels.

Preventing an infestation can be accomplished with some simple habitat modifications. Limiting food sources from bird feeders is one of the easiest. Sealing any potential squirrel entry points is more labor intensive but most effective.

If you are having a squirrel problem in your home, give Critter Control® a call. We’ll set up a free inspection to help assess the severity of the issue and then walk you through all of your options. Contact us today to get started.

At the height of summer, it’s quite possible you may have bats living somewhere in your walls or attic. At night, especially in Miami, your a/c is probably running. The cool air draws bats in and they will likely find solace during the daytime in your walls. The insulation tends to keep this area a more stable temperature.

Do I Have Bats?

There are a few signs that are significant indicators that you have bats roosting in your home.

• Bats flying around your home during dawn or dusk hours.
• Droppings, or guano, on window sills and around the edge of your house
• Chirping, squeaking, or scratching sounds coming from walls and attic at night
• An ammonia smell

How Do Bats Get into My Attic?

To understand how bats get into a house or how bats get into an attic, you must learn more about building structures. The outside of your home is a barrier to the inside. A break in that barrier allows a bat indoors. Below is a list of places to check for entry points on your property:

Soffits

Soffits are the materials that connect your home’s exterior walls to the planks that hang underneath your eaves. Without soffits, the rafters and beams of your home would be open and exposed. Soffits may occasionally detach in small areas, or wildlife such as woodpeckers and squirrels may break or tear them. This gives a bat just enough space to enter your home.

Fascia Boards

Fascia boards are bands or strips of materials. They serve many purposes, including holding gutters in place and closing off the ends of rafters. They are usually wood strips strong enough for adhering gutters, soffits, and roofing materials. Improper installation or damage due to the elements can leave small openings that bats may enter.

Ridge Vents

Roofs with shingles will have ridge vents along the roof’s peak. The ridge vent allows heat and humidity to exit the house. This heat will attract bats looking for a warm place to roost. If the vent is damaged or cracked, bats will use it as an entry point.

Gable Vents

Gable vents are decorative, allowing air to flow into the attic to cool it down when the temperatures are warm. Homeowners can adjust gable vents based on how much air they want to enter the home. Open vents provide the perfect entry point for bats and other wildlife.

Roof Returns or Eaves

Decorative materials may be used during the building process to attach a roof to the side walls of the home. The construction of these materials as well as the condition of returns may determine how well they hold up to weather conditions. Poor construction can leave entry points for bats.

Chimneys

Chimneys are like hallways for animals. Bats can quickly fly in and out of chimneys and roost on bricks or rocks used to construct the chimney. When not in use, chimneys should be fitted with chimney caps to seal the area and prevent bats, birds, and rodents from entering your home. Caps can also prevent debris from drifting into your chimney. Debris that gets stuck can create a fire hazard.

Siding

Siding, whether wall panels or corners, can be damaged by weather over time or by a random rock thrown by a lawn mower. Nuisance wildlife may also cause damage. If it is not installed correctly, wall panels can buckle. Any of these scenarios give bats the perfect opportunity to use your home as a roost.

Can I Exterminate Bats?

Bats are some of the most important creatures in our ecosystem. Alongside bees, they work to pollinate up to 60% of the produce in our diet. In addition to their pollination, they are also some of the best natural pest controllers out there, consuming up to 8000 insects in a single night. Because of this, there are restrictions on how you can handle bats. For instance, it is unlawful to purposefully harm or kill bats.

What if a Bat is Inside My Living Space?

It is uncommon for a bat to be in our living space. And, when one is inside a home, it is there accidentally. Often, it is a juvenile bat that lacks the experience to know that a home is not an appropriate roosting place. Each year, we get calls from homeowners for help removing a bat in their home. It’s important to remove it humanely and without touching it. Bats carry diseases such as rabies and parasites. You do not want to risk getting bitten or scratched.

How to Get a Bat Out of Your Living Space

The first thing to realize is that the bat doesn’t want to harm you. A bat will avoid encounters with people. And it probably wants to leave as much as you want it to leave.

Bats cannot create an entry point to get into your home in the way a raccoon or squirrel might. They take advantage of what small cracks and holes they find. What attracts them to a home is the warm air they detect coming out from that hole. The warmth tells a bat a good roosting spot lies within.

The first thing to do is get all people and pets out of the room. Close the room off so the bat is contained in the room and unable to fly into other parts of the house. Then, open windows and doors. The bat will notice the fresh air and most likely follow it outside.

How to Trap a Bat in Your House

Bats face habitat loss and often turn to attics and shutters for a place to roost during the daytime. There are 45 species of bats in the U.S. All of them are federally protected, and some are on the endangered species list. It is not permissible to kill or harm a bat.

If the bat doesn’t fly out within a reasonable amount of time, you might have to capture it and release it outside. Never set a rat trap or glue board. Follow these steps:

1. Put thick leather gloves on.
2. Wait for the bat to land. It will most likely land on something it can hang from, such as curtains or furniture.
3. Using a large enough container, cover the bat.
4. Slide a stiff piece of cardboard at the open end of the container to keep the bat inside.
5. Take the bat outside.
6. Place the closed container on a tree trunk that is as high as you can reach.
7. Remove the cardboard.

The bat should fly away when it is ready. The reason for putting the bat as high as possible is to keep it safe from predators. In addition, when bats alight from their perch, they first drop before they rise, so a higher branch will give them the space they need to start their flight.

If you suspect that there are bats in your home, it may be a good idea to get a professional out for an inspection. Luckily, Critter Control® has expert technicians trained in the best ways to handle a bat situation, so they can safely remove the animals and clean up after them. To get started today, give us a call at 305-258-3587.

Do you suspect that you’ve got a furry intruder in your attic? Raccoons are sneaky and adaptive little critters, so it’s no wonder they’re nicknamed the ‘Masked Bandit.’ With their strong hand-like paws and sharp claws, they can make their way into your home fairly easily if potential access points are not secured.

Some signs that you may have a raccoon on your property include:

• Tracks in your yard
• Open and rummaged trash cans
• Animal droppings
• Scratched trees
• Noises
• Seeing raccoons

Why My Home?

Man-made structures such as your home are ideal places for raccoons to not only hide from potential predators but brave the elements and protect their young. Your attic provides shelter with an easy way in and out, and the insulation is perfect for creating a soft nest. Chimneys are also quite popular with raccoons because they replicate tree hollows rather well when the vent is closed.

Raccoon Entry Points

Raccoons are agile and strong. They are excellent climbers and have nimble hands with thumb-like digits on their front paws that can grab, claw and tear their way through a variety of surfaces and materials that make up the outer parts of a building, such as:

• Soffits – On a home’s exterior, soffits are both an aesthetic and functional element. Because they are visible, they add character to a home. Functionally, they protect the rafters from the elements. If soffits are worn, they become an easy target for raccoons looking to find a vulnerable place to break into the attic.
• Vents – Roof vents and wall vents meant to maintain air flow to reduce the moisture that can build up in an attic or household systems such as dryers are an easy way for raccoons to gain entry.
• Chimneys – Uncapped chimneys are a common point of entry for raccoons because they have a horizontal smoke shelf convenient for settling down with kits.
• Roof Returns – This is the part of a roof that comes back to the wall of the house. It’s situated between the end of the roof and a home’s exterior wall. If the roof return is worn or damaged, it becomes an easy place for a raccoon to rip away.
• Metal Flashing – Flashing is a thin, flat strips of metal used around the perimeter of roofing systems and around protuberances such as the chimney. Its purpose is to keep water away from the seams and joints on the roof, so the water does not enter the attic. Raccoons have the strength and skill to rip flashing out of place in order to enter.
• Through the Roof – Raccoons are notorious for making their own entryway when none is available. If they’ve identified an attic as the place they want to use for shelter and a nest, they are known to rip off a perfectly intact section of the roof to get inside. They are incredibly cunning and determined and will do whatever it takes to survive the cold winter months and provide a warm den in which to raise their kits.

Professional Inspections

In order to prevent costly damage from a raccoon infestation, you’ll need to act quickly and efficiently. An inspection should be done at once to find any potential or compromised access points into your home and ensure there are no animals in the home before sealing it up. Critter Control®
has been handling wildlife for decades and not only has the experience, but also the expertise to perform a quick, safe, and humane removal of raccoons from your home. Give us a call today at 305-258-3587 for a consultation and home inspection.

Some people love to watch squirrels. They can be entertaining critters, chasing each other around trees, their bushy tails flicking up and down. Some people even place birdfeeders in their yards just to attract more squirrels, but this can be dangerous. Since squirrels will keep coming back for more, and may one day become brave enough to try to nest in your house.

Though you might think there is no harm in feeding squirrels, you should think again. Squirrels, unlike more shy animals like rabbits and foxes, quickly become acclimated to the presence of humans. Often, some will even come right up next to you to steal your food. Their bravery makes them especially likely to try to make their way inside your home.

Squirrels also have clever hands and strong teeth, which help them pry open spaces or even make their own holes to get inside. As proficient climbers, they will often target the attic. They climb up trees, scurry across branches that extend out over or near your house, and then leap onto the roof. Once there, they will try to find a weak point in the exterior to access the inside. This will often be a gap in the gutters, soffits, trim, or vents. If there isn’t a space large enough they can fit through, they can chew holes in the corners of the roof.

How Do Squirrels Get Into an Attic?

As squirrels spend their days running up and down trees and jumping from branch to branch, they have a bird’s-eye view of home roofs and their weaknesses. Because squirrels do not hibernate in winter, the warmth they feel coming from gaps makes an ideal winter den. Squirrels will use their teeth to gnaw through damaged or unscreened vents or tiny gaps to enter the attic. And they most often use the branches of trees near the home or wires to get to the roof. While ideal for squirrels, their presence damages homes and poses health risks for the families within.

Squirrels only need a gap of 1.5 inches to gain entry. The most common places where squirrels find entry into your attic include:

• Soffits – These are the finishing material, mostly made of wood or fiber cement, that covers the underside of a roof overhang. In addition to helping to make the roofline look aesthetically nice, soffits help keep moisture away from the rafters, reducing the chance of mold. Soffits that are not flush with the siding create a gap for squirrels to enter.
• Fascia Boards – These are thin longboards that run along the lower outer edge of a roof, covering the entire roofline. They help keep water out.
• Ridge Vents – Ridge vents are air exhaust vents installed on the peak of a roof that provides continuous exhaust ventilation at the highest part of the attic. Squirrels are attracted to the warm air that comes out of these vents.
• Gable Vents – On a gabled roof, these vents are located at the peak where the two sides meet. They usually have louvers, allowing air to flow into the attic, which works to cool it down in warm weather.
• Roof Returns – This is the part of the roof that doubles back to the wall of the house. It is between the end of the roof and a home’s walls.
• Chimneys – Chimneys conduct smoke and combustion gasses up from a fireplace, stove, or furnace and can run through the attic of a house.
• Siding Corners – This is the trim used to keep your siding in a place where the corners meet.
• Gutters – Gutters capture rainwater and melting snow and channel it away from the house. Clogged gutters that prevent precipitation from running will cause deterioration along the roof edge through which a squirrel can enter.
• Plumbing Mats – This is rubber matting covering cylindrical vents on the roof that connect the plumbing system used to exhaust gasses.

Signs of Squirrels in Wall Cavities

Even though they can’t be seen, squirrels in walls are far from untraceable.

Signs of a squirrel infestation behind the walls include scurrying or scratching noises. Other telltale signs include the presence of chewed holes indicating that squirrels have made their way inside. The pests may also leave scratches or claw marks around vents and other points of entry.

Homeowners should pay particular attention to wires and plumbing that lead into the house, as squirrels commonly take advantage of these vulnerable areas.

Squirrels on Roofs

Squirrels navigate their way through treetops seamlessly, so the pests have no problem climbing onto roofs or into soffits. Homeowners who suspect they have squirrels on the roof should look to trees for confirmation, as the pests use lawn foliage to reach rooftops. Observant people may spot squirrels traveling up and down regularly.

Squirrels on your roof can damage it sometimes requiring expensive roof repair. Squirrels running across your roof can damage roof shingles. Gutters provide nesting materials which can lead to drainage problems. Once they have access to your roof, squirrels can find a way inside via vents, soffits, and eaves.

Squirrels in the Chimney

When selecting places to construct nests, squirrels typically look for secluded areas off the ground with plenty of cover. While squirrels rarely infest chimneys themselves, the pests may nest in metal chimney boxes. If a squirrel falls down a chimney and becomes trapped inside the fireplace, homeowners may be alerted to their presence via various sounds, smells, and sights. Residents may hear chittering, fighting, or scratching at all hours of the day, smell squirrel droppings, and even see the pests running loose inside the home.

Squirrel Removal in Miami

Squirrels frequently invade homes in the late winter and spring because they find attics to be a great place to birth and rear young. This means that if one squirrel makes it inside, you could have a few more in a matter of days. This makes removal especially tricky because it can be difficult to locate the nest as well as trap the mother with her babies.

If this happens to you, don’t hesitate to call Critter Control®. We will rid your home of any squirrels in the safest way for both you and the animals. There are many careless trappers out there who will end up killing the young squirrels or even adult ones with their negligent methods. We know how to trap and handle the animals humanely, giving the mother and young the best chance of thriving later back in the wild. If you have more questions about our squirrel removal, we can give you a free initial inspection if you call 305-258-3587!

Animals are wonderful things. They can bring joy to so many people, both watching them in the wild and owning them as pets. However, when an animal comes into your home unexpectedly, the result is much different.

Squirrels often will sneak into attics in the winter and spring months to have their young. Tree squirrels can have two litters a year. Young are born without fur and aren’t ready to leave the nest for at least a month and a half. By the time two months pass, baby squirrels are typically weaned and on their own.

A family of squirrels in your attic can cause a nuisance, damage your house, and potentially spread diseases.

Squirrel Nest in the Attic

Squirrels are well known for nesting in attics, as they provide a safe hideaway for squirrels to raise their young. The inside of an attic is also full of things for them to nibble and sharpen their ever-growing teeth on, like wood and insulation. When a squirrel chews the insulation on electrical wiring, the possibility of a house fire arises. Squirrels enter attics through crevices, gaps, and cracks in soffits, fascia boards, and eaves, or open vents or broken shingles in the roof. Once squirrels reach the attic, they have free reign of the house.

How Not to Get Rid of Squirrels in the Attic

When confronted with squirrels in your attic, you may think it is a good idea to leave poison up there. While this may seem like an easy, no-hassle solution, this is actually a terrible idea. The squirrel young won’t be able to move around to get to the poison, so it would only affect the mother and potentially others in your household. Without the mother, the babies will die of starvation. Dead squirrels will decompose in your attic, and you may not be able to find them or get to the bodies, so you could have horrible smells and even bacteria in your house.

You also might think that you need to seal your home as soon as possible before more squirrels can use your attic as a birthing space. But, this will simply trap the existing squirrel babies and potentially the mother inside, leaving them all to die of starvation. This will have similar results with bad odors and decomposition like the poisoning method. Even if the mother was not trapped inside, she will simply chew another hole somewhere to get in to her babies.

Squirrel repellents do not provide a long-term squirrel control solution. Mothballs are dangerous. Bright lights will initially scare the squirrels away, but eventually, they will grow used to them.

How Critter Control Gets Rid of Squirrels in the Attic

The best and safest way to remove squirrels from your attic is by calling the experts at Critter Control. We’ll use a combination of one-way doors or live traps to remove the squirrel.

Once the squirrels are safely removed, we identify and seal all entry points to prevent future squirrel infestations.  Squirrel exclusions are the most effective, long-term solution to a squirrel problem.

At Critter Control®, we have decades of squirrel trapping knowledge and we use only the most efficient and humane removal methods available. Call us today for your free consultation at 305-258-3587.

It may have been a while since you have been in your attic or looked carefully at your insulation. But, if you have had a problem with rats in your house over the years, there is a good chance that they lived in your attic and used your insulation to form nests. This could be a significant problem depending on the number of rats in your attic and the extent of insulation they used, since they can cause damage with their excrement and by creating nests.

Identifying Rat Droppings and Nests

Rat droppings are normally oblong, brown pellets. They are often found closely scattered around an area with other droppings. Though the presence of urine may be hard to detect in the insulation depending on its color, if there are droppings, you can rest assured that there will be urine as well. If you can’t see it, you can almost certainly smell it.

You may also see parts of your insulation torn to shreds, clumped together, or bare patches where insulation should be. This will likely mean that rats gathered it together to use as a nest, since it is perfect nest material. It is soft and retains heat well, providing a cozy home for rats. However, this is at great cost to the homeowner.

The Damage

Certainly, the damage of rats in your attic is obvious, especially to youRat Droppings in Insulationr insulation. The droppings all over and urine soaked into the insulation is plainly disgusting and unhealthy. First, it smells awful. The strong ammonia-like scent of their urine can not only stink up your attic, but can flow into other parts of your house as well.

Depending on the extent of the rat infestation, the insulation in your attic could be completely ruined. If you just had one or two rats hiding out, then likely there will be sections of the insulation you have to remove and replace, but it won’t be so bad. You might even be able to clean up much of the mess to save the insulation. However, if you had a full-blown infestation on your hands, it may just be easier to scrap it all and completely clean your attic, and then install new insulation.

The Good News

You don’t have to worry about cleaning your attic and replacing the insulation yourself – Critter Control®is here to help! Even though you might think we just catch nuisance animals, we can do far more: repair damage caused by critters, seal up your home, and clean up any waste they left behind. So even if the rats are long gone, we can still help you deal with the aftermath. Call us today for a free inspection at 305-258-3587.