Get Rid Of Squirrels In The Attic
Learn About Products to Get Rid of Squirrels in your Attic.
Learn About Methods to Get Rid of Squirrels in the Attic.
What works to get rid of squirrels in the / "your" attic and what does not. Get Rid of Squirrels In The Attic gives recommendations for the most effective long term Squirrel Control. Learn how to get rid of squirrels in your attic for good.

Approximately 15,000 Residential Fires are caused each year by rodents, like attic squirrels, chewing on attic wiring. A lack of effective squirrel control could cost you your home - and even your life.

Do Not Let Squirrels That Get Into Your Attic:

Turn Your Attic Into This:

Squirrels Wire Damage In An Attic:



What was used to get rid of this home's 10 year squirrels in the attic problem? And the squirrels that caused wire damage - they still play in her yard but the squirrels will not go back into her attic for over 5 years now.
This is a video made the day of installation when of one of the squirrels when it tried to get back into her attic:
What the Squirrel sees Flashing ... Flashing ... Flashing at 400,000 Candlepower per flash! :

The flash last only 1/30th of a second.
StunBright™ is HOW to Get Rid of Squirrels in the Attic - long term:
Get rid of squirrels in YOUR attic!
Pictured above uses only 4.8 watts of electricity - about the same as the average night light.
StunBright™ covers a maximum of 900 sq .ft. (30X30) of space/area. For a greater "shock and awe" type of effect as how to get rid of squirrels in an attic 500 sq. ft. (25X25) of coverage give the maximum effect.
It works to get rid of squirrels in attics, storage rooms and garages - where squirrels often get into car wiring and do alot of damage by chewing car wires.
How StunBright™ Works to Get Rid of Squirrels in the Attic:

The ciliary muscle (in the squirrels' eyes controls the expansion and contraction of the squirrels' pupils. The usual movemants made by the ciliary muscle are small. In response to the StunBright Squirrel Bouncer in a dark (naturally dark or becomes dark at night) environment the squirrels' ciliary muscle have to make dramatic adjustments (140-180 times per minute). An ophthalmologist spoken to, at a world famous clinic in Scottsdale AZ, likened it to this: Imagine you lift a ten pound dumbbell weight one time. Then imagine that you lifted the same weight 1,500 times in a ten minute period. Your arm would be hurting for days. The ophthalmologist said high intensity pulse beams would have the same effect on rodent (and other animal pests’) eyes. And, the squirrels in your attic are rodents - THE RESULT: YOU GET RID OF THE SQUIRRELS IN YOUR ATTIC - LONG TERM / FOR GOOD.
StunBright™ as HOW to Get Rid of Squirrels in the Attic - Click Below:
If you want to get rid of squirrels in the attic then the science validates using StunBright™.
Stunbright™ works in unison with a number of physiological factors as how to get rid of squirrels in the attic.
The Grey / Gray Squirrel's Latin name is Sciurus Carolinensis. Grey / Gray squirrels mate twice a year - in the early spring or late winter and in the summer. The mother squirrels will give birth to their young about 45 days after mating. A squirrel has 4 to 6 baby squirrels (kittens) per litter. A pair of healthy squirrels could produce a dozen baby squirrels in your attic each year. In twelve months the newborn attic squirrels become breeding age adult squirrels. Each litter of squirrels does not leave its mother' squirrels' nest aka. drey for the first 10 to 12 weeks of its life. The infant squirrels are completely dependant on their mothers' milk to live. If you have squirrels in the attic there most likely are baby squirrels in your attic 40% of the year. Trapping to get rid of squirrels in the attic or poisoning to get rid of squirrels in the attic could leave baby squirrels up in your attic in a nesting site to eventually die of starvation. Mother squirrels will nest in the safest place they can find to protect her young litter. Attics are ideal locations to get out of the cold and to get out away from predator threats and dangers. The cavities in the your home's walls are many times chosen by nesting attic squirrels - the radiant heat in the winter and the cool air from cool air conditioning make the interior house walls good nesting sites for mother squirrels. These cavities are accessed by the squirresl through top of the wall openings in your attic. If you use rat poison or a squirrel trap to try to get rid of squirrels in the attic, then you could be smelling dead, baby squirrels rotting in your attic or walls for weeks. And if you use a rat poison to kill the squirrels, the squirrel will often retreat to its nest in your attic to die and you will be smelling its rotting body for weeks. Often interior walls have to be cut into to get to and remove the dead squirrels. Attic squirrels may nest under attic flooring and the flooring will have to be removed to get to and remove the dead squirrels in the attic. AND PLEASE KEEP IN MIND, THAT IF YOU HEAR SQUIRRELS IN YOUR ATTIC THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, YOU MOST LIKELY HAVE 4 TO 6 BABIES PER EACH MOTHER SQUIRREL IN THE ATTIC 40-50% OF THE YEAR. A MOTHER SQUIRREL CAUGHT IN A SQUIRREL TRAP, WHETHER SNAP TRAP OR LIVE TRAPPED, AND CARRIED AWAY - OR - A POISONED SQUIRREL - OR - A SQUIRREL SHOT WITH A PELLET GUN - COULD, 40% TO 50% OF THE YEAR, RESULT IN DEAD YOUNG SQUIRRELS IN YOUR ATTIC OR INTERIOR HOUSE WALLS LEFT TO DECAY AND SMELL.
Rat traps are often used as squirrel traps as how to get rid of squirrels in the / your attic. Rat traps are designed to trap rats - not to get rid of the squirrels in your attic / roof! I am speaking of the snap trap variety of rat traps. I have seen a squirrel that was trapped in a rat trap and it did not kill the squirrel. The rat trap used as a squirrel trap to get rid of attic squirrels was placed in an attic by a well meaning husband trying to get rid of his squirrels in the attic. He had placed about a dozen rat traps in a 2,000 square foot attic space. The traps had been up in the attic to get rid of the squirrels for seven years! After 7 years a squirrel ran past one and tripped the rat trap trigger. The rat trap snapped shut on the attic squirrel's foot. Where do you think this injured squirrel with a rat trap attached to its broke leg ran? The squirrel ran to an interior house wall where its nest was. There's no place like home. The squirrel painfully managed to force its broken leg through the wall opening in the attic with the rat trap still attached. But as the squirrel tried to leave the interior wall space to go back up into the attic the rat trap used as a squirrel trap became stuck and so was the injured squirrel. Unfortunately the squirrel had to be put down.
If you use a rat trap as a squirrel trap the squirrel will usually not face an immediate death being as the rat traps are not designed to be used as a squirrel trap. The squirrel will definitely suffer and if it is able to move it will often retreat to its squirrel nest in your attic to die and rot and smell.
If you use a poison to get rid of attic squirrels, besides the risk of it or its young dying in your attic or home's wall, is the risk of a sickened or dead family pet. Plus - there are no poisons registered to get rid of squirrels. Using a rat poison to get rid of squirrels in the attic is illegal.
Every year there are hundreds of cases of secondary pet poisonings from a dog or cat chewing on or partially ingesting and then digesting a poisoned rat, mouse or squirrel. If a dog or cat finds a dead squirrel - and they can smell them out, the family pet finds what to them is a chew toy and/or an extra meal. As they carry around the dead squirrels in their mouths, as some kind of won trophy, they are ingesting the very poisons that killed the squirrels. At the very least, your pet could get sick and sometimes they die. This death will occur some times because there is often, over time, more than one dead squirrel that they find and the poisons accumulate in the pet's blood stream until it becomes sick and dies, or at least runs up a considerable veterinary bill.
How to Get Rid of Squirrels in YOUR Attic - Squirrels' Scent Glands
The scent glands of squirrels that get into the attic (and elsewhere) are located in the squirrels' feet. As the squirrels run the squirrels also leave little scent road maps for other squirrels to follow to get into your attic. Also, the pheromones in rodent urine (squirrels are rodents) can last up to two years in your attic. Tree squirrels love to live in attics. It’s warmer in your attic, drier in your attic and safer from predators in your attic. Unfortunately most attics are not equipped with squirrel toilets. But this is not a problem for the squirrels in your attic - they will just urinate and defecate all over your attic. And I do mean all over. It is amazing to see an attic where squirrels have been neating and residing. Raisin sized squirrels' dung all over the place and matted down insulation which is stained with and smells of squirrels' urine. It is truly nasty – but not to the squirrels in your attic. The urine and glands in the squirrels’ feet leave pheromone trails which are like a welcome mat or “attic for rent” sign for future squirrels to find your attic. This is why squirrel trapping, poisoning, or house sealing has to be done over and over and over by homeowners at great cost each time and most definitely accumulatively. I know this from experience and so does my pocketbook.
I am in the pest control industry - 12 years now. I have to be familiar with many aspects and areas of the industry. In one of the pest control classes I attended, taught by a pest
control inspector, the inspector informed us that integrity was a big part of keeping our state license. As part of ensuring this, the state inspectors
would “shadow”/observe unawares a pest control operator and before an inspector does a site, chemical, equipment, paper work, and service
vehicle inspection he/she would often watch the pest professional from a distance without the pest control operator’s knowledge he/she was being
watched/inspected. The inspector teaching the class said that in the vast majority of the times a squirrel or rat was live trapped at a customer’s residence
or business the squirrel or rat was unethically released within two blocks of where it was caught. In this case the squirrel or rat would just return to the capture site.
Pest control operators in most states are required to take the squirrel at least two miles away from the capture site before releasing it. The inspector
told the class that our license would be in jeopardy if we were caught doing this unethical practice.
So if you hire a pest control company to live trap and/or seal your home or business - what certainty do you have that the pest control employee won’t just let the squirrel, mouse, or rat out of the live trap just down the street? Again this was not the exception but the majority according to the inspector’s class. And if you snap trap the pest, or glue trap the pest, or zap trap the pest – What keeps other animal pest from following the scent trail to your home or property?
A Squirrel's Motto:
"There's No Place Like Home" - AKA, "You're not going to get rid of this squirrel"
Squirrel Traps and the Homing Behavior of Squirrels in the Attic
Eighty percent of squirrels that get trapped in live squirrel traps and released within two miles return will return to your their home.
This number of reappearing attic squirrels drops in percentage with each mile that the squirrels are taken from the capture site. At a 5-7 mile range a significant, but reduced, number of trapped and released squirrels still return to the capture site. In field experiments approximately 5% of trapped and released squirrels (red and grey squirrels) returned from as far a 10-12 miles from where the squirrels were caught in live squirrel traps. One squirrel trapped and carried about twenty-five miles away from the squirrel trap site returned to its home about one month later.
In the two experiments, from which the figures were taken, over 100 individual squirrels were trapped and released. One squirrel trapping and homing behavior study was performed by the University Of Connecticut. The other squirrel trapping and homing behavior study was performed by a large pest control company over a three year period. In each case the trapped squirrels were caught in live squirrel traps and transported with special attention paid to the prevention of the squirrels having visual cues along the traveled paths aka. they could not see where they were going. This was done because squirrels that are trapped and then can see along the route to their release site almost always find there way back. Hey, a squirrel can turn left at the park and then right at the McDonalds too.
If trapped and released squirrels can't see the relocation route - how do these squirrels so quickly find their way back? One study by University of Laval in Quebec, Canada found that red squirrels, when released from the squirrel traps, had a basic sense of the direction which they needed to travel back to the place where they were trapped. But, the trapped and released squirrels did not seem to have any knowledge of how far they were from the place where the squirrel traps were set and they were captured. Seventeen squirrels were trapped and released in this squirrel trap and release homing behavior study. This squirrel trapping study suggest that the squirrels use two strategies to return the the site where the squirrels were trapped. The first is the squirrels innate sense of direction orientation. The second was the exploratory trips the squirrels made toward the place where the squirrel traps were placed and they were captured. Since the squirrels did not see the travel route form the squirrel trap placement to the release sites how did they find their way back home if they had no visual cues by which to orient themselves. Was it a re-adjusting of their internal sense of direction or their keen sense of smell that enable them to pick of the pheromones of familiar squirrels? In another study done on a different member of the rodent family suggest that visual cues or a lack of them may not be the only mechanism of squirrel homing behavior. In this other rodent homing study the mice (cousins of squirrels) were trapped. Half of the mice were blinded. The blind mice found their way back to the place where they were trapped equal to the seeing mice. This study was repeated ten times with a new set of mice each time and the blind mice found their way home just as well as the seeing mice. Still thinking about using squirrel traps to solve your attic squirrel problem? Still thinking about using squirrel traps to solve your attic squirrel problem? Still thinking about using squirrel traps to solve your attic squirrel problem? Sorry for repeating myself - but squirrel traps can put you into a repetitive cycle too. And if you hire a professional squirrel trapper the cost are very often repetitive too.
The preponderance of the returning live trapped squirrels in most squirrel trapping studies are the male squirrels. Within a two mile range this male to female returning squirrel ratio was not as pronounced. Closer to, and up to, the two mile range most of the returning, trapped and released squirrels were male squirrels. After two miles the number of trapped and returning female squirrels dropped significantly. The two experiments were performed in opposing seasons. The University of Connecticut experiment was conducted in the middle of winter. The pest control company's experiment was conducted over three consecutive summers. The term of the pest control company's experiment would have cover the period during which the female squirrels would have had nursing/blind baby squirrels in their nests. Again, few of these female squirrels returned to their nesting sites to care for their baby squirrels if they were carried more than two miles away from the live squirrel trap site.
In the University of Connecticut experiment the trapped squirrels were individually identified and marked via toe clippings and released. The squirrels that returned to the capture site were recaptured and taken a farther distance away and still half of them returned - all of theses second trip squirrels were males.
Very little is known about the internal mechanisms of a squirrel's homing ability. Other rodents show the same abilities. In one experiment of the homing abilities of mice almost all of the trapped and release mice returned to their nesting areas when taken and release up to two miles away.
In each of these get rid of squirrels in the attic by trapping experiments the miles measured were in straight lines ("as a crow flies"). In the pest control company's experiments the mileage was measured also in a straight line but in some cases the additional precaution of traveling in a zigzag pattern was employed and this additional measure did not seem to confound the squirrels innate homing abilities. Again, 'There's no place like home" - even for a squirrel in the attic.
The Reason Squirrels Return / Get Back to YOUR Attic? - NUTS!
Squirrels spend a great deal of their daylight hours foraging for food. A squirrel will scent mark and bury hundreds of acorns to see itself through the winter. Imagine if you had all your winters food stored in just one place. Imagine that you spent a great deal of your time diligently protecting your territory and food hidden on it. Ever heard of a Fort?, Castle?, Bank Vault? And imagine that your saved stores could last for two years. And someone kidnapped you and took you far away from your home and its food. I'd be back too! And if you don't return / get back? Another squirrel will scent out your hidden food stores and move right in.
The HOW to get rid of squirrels in the attic Solution:
With StunBright Squirrel Bouncer these problems are addressed. First, we have found that if a squirrel or rat is living in a house wall that it accesses through a space that is protected by a high intensity pulse beam that the squirrel or rat will give up going to its nesting area in the wall. It just is not worth it.
Second, Attic squirrels and rats are good mothers. If their young are in what the rodent mother deems an "unsafe" area she will move them to another place that she sees as safe. We recommend that a person using pulse beams simply turn off the pulse beams for a few hours at a time during the first few days to allow the mothers to move their young. Then when all the attic squirrels, attic rats, raccoons, etc., are gone - turn on the pulse beams and leave them on. The problem of trying to get rid of squirrels in the attic solved! No dead, rotting squirrels or rats. No dead or sick family pets from secondary poisoning. No repeating and repeating the squirrel trapping nightmare in attempts to get rid of squirrels in the attic.

The most active foraging time for the squirrels that live in the attic is the fall. As the fall progresses the attic squirrels spend a greater percentage of their time foraging and hiding their winter food supplies. The attic squirrel's typical behavior is to carry a nut, such as an acorn or pecan, about 50 feet from the tree from which it is gathered and then pretend to bury the nut. Yes, you did read right - squirrels living in the attic are very smart. We protect our money with passwords and pin codes. An attic squirrel protects his or her food stores by pretending to bury it as many as three times. The attic squirrel will dig a hole. Then the squirrel will pretend to put the nut in the hole. The squirrel covers the hole with leaves and dirt and repeats this process. And, if an attic squirrel sees that it is being watched it will then repeat this process with the same nut for several days. The squirrel will dig up its buried acorns and relocate each nut with the same deceptive behavior for each nut. Then after a full day of foraging and hiding its winter stores it will retreat at dusk and will be a happy squirrel in the attic - with food stores in your yard and returns to the attic for the night. Researchers have even dug around areas where an attic squirrel has buried a nut in the sight of the squirrel and the squirrel will then multiply its deceptive tactics in order to protect its winter food.
Squirrels are very territorial, especially the male squirrels. This makes attempts to get rid of squirrels in the attic via squirrel traps very difficult. If a male squirrel is caught in a cage squirrel trap and released into an area with other male squirrels which are protecting their nut stores the trapped and relocated squirrel is chased away. Squirrel Control by other squirrels! This is another reason why the preponderance of squirrels that are caught in a squirrel trap that return to their capture sight are male. Females are more readily accepted into a new squirrel community especially by the male squirrels in the area. Squirrel trapping professionals love this because you will be calling them back to fish dead baby squirrels out of a wall. I talked to one pest professional who owns a rather large pest control company which is back-logged with squirrel control work setting squirrel traps and house sealing for at least a month in the months from October to May. He told me that by the time he gets through with the added up squirrel trapping and house sealing charges to the typical home it averages from $1,200 - 2,600 per home to get rid of squirrels in the attic - but many home owners have told me that they have spent a small fortune to get rid of squirrels in the attic this way only to have the squirrels return or other squirrels take their place in the attic. Professional squirrel trapping and house sealing can get expensive! And, if the pest professional who trapped the squirrel in the attic releases the squirrel within 2 miles of your attic (and according to pest control inspectors most do) the squirrel eighty percent of the time will make it back to your attic within about 2 weeks and get back into the attic by chewing a new hole - many time the new attic entrance hole is only inches away from sealed holes.
Knowledge is the first step towards effective, safe Pest Control.
Squirrel Control:
Squirrel Control and Rat Control by means of wolf urine, coyote urine, fox urine, predator urine, or scents? Will these get rid of squirrels in the attic?
Why shake out your hard earned money on odor repellents, that the academic pest professionals say do not work?
In the first place - been there done that. I can tell you from personal experience that this does not work for long - In my case it did not work at all. Besides I do not want more urine smell in my attic. Enough is enough. Oh! (But the web sites say) this will scare away the pest because the rat, mouse, mice, squirrel, raccoon will smell the predator urine and it will be frightened away. Please do not waste your hard earned money on these products. Too many people do.
Here's Something Else to Think About:
The MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) for one of these products lists fox urine as a main ingredient. Where is all this dried fox urine coming from? Are there fox port-a-potties placed in the forest? It takes a lot of fox urine to produce these products. Where is it coming from? The largest source of fox urine on the market is supplied by the fur trade industry. Hundreds of foxes in cages with trays beneath each cage to collect the marketable urine. Do you want to purchase a product that does not give long term results? Do you want your money going to support the fur trade industry?
There is a restaurant with a giant Paul Bunyan statue in the parking lot with a big axe in his hands. Is this scaring the human customers away?
Have you ever seen a picture of a scarecrow out in a corn field with a bird sitting on it? – I have. Again, please don’t waste your money on a
plastic owl – unless all you want is one or two days of squirrel control until the pest figures out it’s not real.
This will work for a day or two but that is about it. I know people who sleep with a radio or a television on all night with the volume up.
When asked how they could sleep with such noise they respond “Oh, I’m used to it”. The pest will get used to it too. No one likes to be kicked
out of their home – rodents are no exception.
Pellet Gun to get rid of squirrels in the attic?
What if you just wound it and it runs to its nest – IN YOUR ATTIC – and dies? Or - it has baby squirrels in the attic or in your house walls? Well, happy smells to you Annie Oakley. Besides, in many towns this is illegal.
This is a way to control attic squirrels. BUT, there are several drawbacks. Be careful for your fingers – if it can snap a mouse’s spine it can certainly break
or severely hurt a finger. Children can get hurt. Family pets could get hurt. Emergency rooms are expensive.
Mouse traps, mice traps, rat traps are meant for smaller rodents. Squirrel control via this method could mean a squirrel caught in one of these could suffer for hours. A large rat (and rats can get as large as a small cat) might possibly have to be killed while still caught in the trap. Pest control manuals recommend attaching snap traps to a larger board so a larger wounded animal caught in a trap doesn’t drag it elsewhere where it will die and smell and be hard to retrieve. I have personally seen a squirrel in an attic that caught its foot in a snap trap. The squirrel then retreated with the snap trap attached to its foot into an inner house wall and became caught in between the attic wall and the open attic space because the trap would not fit back through the space between the wall and the attic. This squirrel would have died in the wall and would have rotted and smelled had it not been found and removed.
If you use a rat trap, or a mouse trap, or a squirrel trap that is designed to kill the pest - what if it has babies living in the attic or wall spaces of your property? They die and the smell is horrible! Plus then you have to go through the expense of having a pest control professional crawling through your attic and possibly cutting into your walls to remove the dead litter. But with Stunbright™ if the pulse beams are turned off for short periods of time (several hours) during the first few days - the rat, or squirrel has a chance to remove its young and the whole family leaves. This is squirrel control and rat control that does not leave a rotting dead animal in your walls or attic. This is truly the best way to get rid of attic squirrels, raccoons, bats in the attic, rats in the attic, skunks under the house and opossums in the attic or crawl space.
Pest control manuals and text books give guidelines on disposal of trapped and killed or injured squirrels. First, warnings are made that wounded squirrels can be very dangerous. Secondly, dead squirrels can carry diseases so wear the proper protective equipment. Third, It is recommended that the dead squirrels be sprayed thoroughly with a clorox and water solution before removal and disposal. Also be aware that the dead squirrels may have fleas that have been feeding on their blood and if one of these fleas bites you then you could be infected with a pathogen. Lyme disease, a disease that was once thought only to be in deer ticks, has now been found in fleas. The “black death” was spread by fleas on black rats aka. roof rats.
The use of moth balls in an attic or other spaces to get rid of squirrels in the attic is illegal in all 50 states. If you use moth balls to get rid of squirrels, to get rid of bats in the attic, and to get rid of raccoons in the attic or any other vertebrate pest or even suggest their use to someone to get rid of squirrels in their attic - you are committing, at least a misdemeanor, and even a felony in many states. If you are considering using Moth balls to get rid of squirrels in the attic then you need to read this - Moth balls are toxic to humans and pets. Most moth balls are made from naphthalene which is we get from coal tar. The gas
emitted from moth balls is heavier than air and will seep from your attic and get into the lower levels of your home – your living areas. Many people will
recommend moth balls to get rid of squirrels in the attic or to get rid of other pests in the attic. In states such as Arizona, California, Florida and New York this simple recommendation
is a felony. Moth balls take oxygen out of the air. Their purpose is to suffocate moths in a contained environment. It is similar, very similar to running
a car engine in a garage with the garage door closed. Several years ago a friend had a yard man tell her to put moth balls in her attic to get rid of the squirrels in her attic. It worked to get rid of her attic squirrels for a while but the amount of moth balls she had to put in the attic spaces to get rid of the squirrels in her attic made her house stink of moth
balls. Now, my friend could not smell the moth balls after several days, but everyone who entered her house was over-whelmed by the odor. I have asthma
and when visiting her it greatly bothered my asthma. Two years later the lowest places in her house, such as bathroom cabinets, linen closets, etc. still
smells of moth balls. Many people who make this huge mistake then spend years trying to get rid of the moth ball smell still in their house. Good luck! To this day,
freshly laundered towels that have been placed in her bathroom cabinets soon acquire the smell of the moth balls. Again, my friend could not smell the
moth balls but everyone who entered her house could. Same thing with squirrels in your attic - they get used to the smell - unless you use so many moth balls
that the toxic vapors are so heavy that the squirrels or other rodents get out – which means these heavier than air toxic vapors are seeping down into
your living areas and into your lungs and into your blood stream. Did you know that babies that have been wrapped in blankets which were stored with moth
balls have been found to have high levels of naphthalene in their blood streams? Moth balls for squirrel control, been there – smelled that, in most cases it
is illegal and very toxic.

Been there, done that too! I wish I had my money back. That ultrasonic thing was expensive and the owner of the company told me how great it would work.
Yeah buddy. Did you know that several of the leading vertebrate pest specialists - PhD. Professors, experts in the field have tried to get the Federal
Trade Commission to ban ultrasonic pest control devises because they do not work? The Federal Trade Commission has published a warning to all ultrasonic pest repeller manufacturers and retailers. There may be an initial effect but research shows that the pests return and become habituated (get used to the noise). How long do ultrasonics work? Research shows that the repelling effect last for 1-3 days, but after 3-7 days the pests become habituated to the noise and continue living in the space not bothered enough to leave their home. Additional research confirms that ultrasonic pest repellers may have a partial or transitory effect, but have no persistent effectiveness. Most academic researchers urge legislatures and consumers to view ultrasonic pest repellents with skepticism. The New York State Consumer Protection Board cautions against using ultrasonic repellers. In addition to this, contrary to the claims of many ultrasonic pest control device sellers, there is scientific evidence that some of these devices cause hearing loss in pets, most especially dogs . Even the US Army does not approve of ultrasonic pest control devices.
Did you know that 25% of house fires of "unknown cause" are attributed to Attic Squirrels, Roof Rats, Norway Rats and Mice chewing on wires?
Learn more:
The term “rodent” comes from the Latin verb rodere meaning "to gnaw". Rodents, such as Squirrels, are constantly gnawing on wood and wiring because their teeth are continually growing. For instance, the grey squirrel’s teeth grow a half a foot in length each year. Rodents, such as Squirrels, have to chew and gnaw constantly to keep their teeth’s length in check otherwise their teeth would grow too long - rendering the Squirrels unable to eat and thus the squirrels would starve to death.
As a result of this constant need to gnaw twenty-five percent of fires of “unknown cause” are attributed to rodents, such as Roof Rats, Attic Squirrels and Mice, chewing on electrical wires. A lack of Squirrel Control or Rat Control could lead to your house catching fire in the middle of the night.
According to the US Fire Administration, a house fire occurs every 79 seconds. There are usually about 50,000 – 60,000 residential fires of “unknown cause”
each year in the US. Officials at the Department of Homeland Security estimate that they receive reports from fire departments on only half of the actual number
of fires that occur each year. This means that the number of fires of “unknown cause” each year could be double the 50 to 60 thousand average. That’s possibly
up to 120,000 fires of “unknown cause” each year in the US as a result of inadequate Squirrel Control or Rat Control. And remember that 25% of these fires are attributed to Squirrels in the attic, Roof Rats and Mice chewing on attic wiring. Therefore, based
on government statistics and statements made by government authorities, the number of residential fires cause by the failure to get rid of Attic Squirrels, Roof Rats, Norway Rats and Mice are
approximately 15,000 fires annually and could be as high as 30,000 fires. If you have rodents, such as squirrels or mice, in your attic – you probably have wire
damage too.
Rodents make up more than one-third of the known kinds of mammals - they are the most abundant mammal in many parts of the world. Most rodents are nocturnal or crepuscular; tree squirrels and ground squirrels are strictly diurnal; others may be active either by night or by day.
Squirrels live, on average, for 3-5 years. Squirrels mate between February and March and also between July and August. Adult female squirrels have two litters a year with 1-3 infants per litter. The young remain in the nest for about 10 weeks. Squirrels’ teeth are continually growing. Squirrels have 22 teeth. They gnaw and chew on just about anything. They even grind their teeth in their sleep. City officials of New York City attribute at least one power outage each day to squirrels. Squirrels actually cause more power outages than lightning in some states. In Georgia in 2006 there were 16,750 power outages caused by squirrels. Not all of these outages were caused by the squirrels’ chewing on the wires – some were just contact electrocutions but many were via contact with the metal wire after the squirrel chewed through the soft plastic wire jacket covering and the squirrel was electrocuted.
How to get rid of squirrels in the attic? - House sealing, squirrel trapping and removal, live traps, animal removal, squirrel removal, squirrel traps, rat traps, mice traps - what’s best to get rid of squirrels in the attic?
Squirrels will migrate – in mass. In 1791 in Ohio the squirrel population exploded and squirrels in mass migrated to the town of Belpre and consumed the entire area’s corn crop. They then in mass swam across the Ohio River into West Virginia and began devouring the corn crops there.
Squirrels usually cluster in groups up to about twelve. So, if you hear squirrels in your attic you may have a migrating population that will stay in numbers of one to a full dozen in your attic. An acre of area may contain multiple groups of squirrels. If you get rid of some – well, if you’ve built it they will come.
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Eastern Grey Squirrels
The Eastern Grey Squirrel: The Eastern Grey Squirrel's Scientific name is Sciurus Carolinensis. The First part of this name is the Latin word for squirrel. The name Sciurus (Squirrel) is derived from the combination of two Greek words. Skia "shadow" and Oura, "tail" - thus Sciurus (squirrel) means "shadow tail" because squirrels use their tails as shade and an umbrella. The word Carolinensis is the Latinized word which means "of Carolina". Carolina is the place where the first grey squirrels were first collected and described. "Eastern" denotes the regions in the United States in which this squirrel was originally found. The name "Grey" is derived from its greyish appearance. The word Squirrel comes from two French words "esquireul and escuriuel.
Identifying Eastern Grey Squirresl:
The Eastern Grey Squirrel is a medium-sized tree squirrel which prefers to nest in trees or attics. The Eastern Grey Squirrel is distinguished from the Fox Squirrel by its grayer back and it white belly area. The Eastern Grey Squirrel is smaller than the Fox Squirrel. The Eastern Grey Squirrel has a more slender face profile, white edging of its tail and 2 more additional upper cheek teeth than is cousin the Fox Squirrel.
The General upper coloring of the grey squirrel is gray.. The males and females are the same shade of gray but the younger squirrels tend to be grayer than the adults.. In winter they grey squirrel has a silver tone to its fur which is also longer and fuller. The winter grey squirrels also have a projecting fringe of white fur from their ears. The grey squirrels have a coloring of yellowish brown mingle among the predominate grey on their head, sides, mid-back and upper areas of their feet. The Grey Squirrels have a white area on the back of their ears and a whitish ring around their eyes. They outside parts of their limbs and feet are mostly grey while he chin and belly are whitish. The grey squirrels tail hairs are stripped/banded tan and black with wide whitish tops. In summer the body fur is short but the tail fur is long. Occasionally their are black grey squirrels. The black coloration is more of a glossy black than a flat black. Red colored grey squirrels are very rare. Grey squirrels can also be born as albinos. In areas where this genetic characteristic is more common small colonies of albino grey squirrels might be formed. Grey squirrels shed their fur twice a year - in the fall and spring. These squirrels shed from the head first to their tail last.
The sexes are are identified by by common genital characteristic. As is common among male rodents grey squirrel males' testes, through the duration of the mating season, descend into a temporary scrotum. Male also have a penis bone. The females have eight teats. The population ratio is is slightly higher for the male squirrels by as much as ten percent.
The determination of the age of a grey squirrel is determined by its sexual organs the bones of its wrist joint. Grey Squirrels are believed to live as long as 6-10 years in the wild and up to 15 years in captivity.
The grey squirrel does not have anal musk glands. Its scent is mostly left via urine and the sweat gland located in its feet.
By comparison to most mammals grey squirrels make a lot of noise via their large squirrel vocabulary. A grey squirrel calling out a rapidly repeated ""cherk, cherk, cherk" is calling out a warning or some other state of excitement to is neighboring squirrels. A contented and happy grey squirrel will make a "quack - quack - quack - quaaaa" vocalization. Emotions of resentment or affection are communicated among grey squirrels by varying nasal and throat base grunts, purring and chattering of teeth.
The distribution of the grey squirrel through-out the United States is roughly to the East of the center of Oklahoma if a north to south line is imagined across the North American Continent.
Squirrels’ teeth are continually growing. Squirrels have 22 teeth. They gnaw and chew on just about anything. They even grind their teeth in their sleep. City officials of New York City attribute at least one power outage each day to squirrels. Squirrels actually cause more power outages than lightning in some states. In Georgia in 2006 there were 16,750 power outages caused by squirrels. Not all of these outages were caused by the squirrels’ chewing on the wires – some were just contact electrocutions but many were via contact with the metal wire after the squirrel chewed through the soft plastic wire jacket covering and the squirrel was electrocuted.
Squirrels like to chew on wiring in particular. They do not chew on the wiring to sharpen their teeth. They chew on wiring to clean their teeth. Squirrels are the cleanest of the rodent family. A male grey squirrel will groom itself twice as much as a female squirrel. Squirrels use the bark of trees to keep their teeth clean. Squirrels use a back and forth motion when chewing on the tree bark. This serves as a sort of squirrel dental floss. And squirrels floss very regularly. The soft plastic outer jacket on home wiring is a perfect teeth cleaning material for a squirrel in the attic. Every attic with squirrels I have inspected has had wire damage. Every single one has had wires that an attic squirrel has chewed through to the copper wire center. If a squirrel in the attic chews through the wire outer jacket and exposes both the positive and the negative copper wires then the squirrel in the attic becomes a dead squirrel in the attic by means of electrocution. A squirrel in the attic that makes "contact" while chewing on attic wiring will often catch on fire as the electric currents cook the squirrel. Also, the "contact" made by a squirrel in the attic chewing on wiring can cause an electrical "short" in the wiring. An eclectic short caused by a squirrel in the attic or other wire chewing rodent in an attic causes an estimated 15,000 residential fires per year in the US.
There are about three hundred varieties of squirrels.
A squirrel has a brain about the size of a walnut.
Squirrels communicate with each other through different chirps.
Squirrels can run fast. Squirrels can run up to a speed of about twenty miles per hour.
Squirrels eat up to 2 pounds of food each week. A squirrel's diet consists of nuts, acorns, bird seed, bird eggs, mushrooms, corn, wheat, insects, garbage, and berries. Squirrels scent mark their food before they hide it for the winter.
Squirrels have double-jointed hind legs. This aids squirrels in their ability to run up and down trees quickly.
A squirrel can fall up to 100 feet without injury.
Squirrels have 4 toes on their front feet. The nails on their front feet are very sharp which helps them hold onto surfaces they are climbing.
Squirrels have 5 toes on their back feet.
The Eastern Grey Squirrel can also be found in Western states as well as in Ireland, England and South Africa.
The name "Squirrel" comes from a Greek word meaning "shadow tail".
A male squirrel can "scent" a female squirrel in heat a mile away.
Squirrels can jump a distance of approximately 20 feet.
Squirrels are found on almost every continent.
Squirrels have eyes on the sides of their head which allows them to see behind themselves.
Squirrel predators include snakes, cats, owls, hawks, foxes, bobcats and raccoons to name a few.
A Squirrel will clean a nut before burying it. The squirrel will first crack the nut open with its sharp teeth. The squirrel will then lick the nut clean. The squirrel will also rub the nut on its face to clean the nut. Both the licking and the rubbing of a nut by a squirrel will mark the nut with the squirrel's scent and make the nut easier to find after it is buried. The squirrel can find the nut even under a foot of snow. If you have squirrels in the attic they will also hide nuts in the attic. I have been in a attic where multiple squirrels lived and it was littered with peanuts and peanut shells that a neighbor threw out in his yard to feed the squirrels. The squirrels in the attic had done extensive wire damage - with multiple chewed through and copper exposed wire. Attic squirrels may be cute in the yard but they are a fire hazard in an attic. This is why it is so important to get rid of squirrels in the attic.
When a squirrel senses danger its first instinct is to stand perfectly still. I remember a particular squirrel in an attic that upon seeing me "froze" and stood still for a minute or two looking straight at me without so much as a twitch. The squirrel in the attic did not run away until I moved towards the "frozen" squirrel.
A squirrel's meandering path while crossing a road is its way of confusing an on-coming car. This very squirrel behavior causes the death of thousands of squirrels each year as this squirrel behavior causes them to run right back in front of the car they are attempting to evade. Many a homeowner has had to call a pest control professional to "fish out" dead baby squirrels in the attic - squirrels that have been orphaned by a neighbor's car.
When a squirrel's nest becomes infested with parasites and fleas it will move to a different nest.
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