Squirrel!!!!!!

Well, it is that time of year again Clark Griswold is on TV having problems with a squirrel. And here in Cincinnati Ohio many people are going through the same thing, not only with squirrels, raccoons are invading homes in record numbers. Many of our customers wonder why they are being invaded. These animals view our homes in their base terms, they are dead wood with a hollow and as such, they utilize them as a hollow tree. I often hear from customers that it is due to "all the woods are being cut down for new homes". That is a good theory but does little to explain all the animal entry in areas such as Hyde Park where there is very little new construction. The truth is, most of the animals we deal with are urban animals. They do much better in an urban setting. The average female squirrel or raccoon has a litter of four that they raise then push out into the real world. Now if that real world is a remote rural setting, there is a limited amount of housing and food (carrying capacity) and nature through starvation, predation and exposure limit there numbers. Now if those same young animals are pushed out in a urban setting, there are many "hollow trees" (our homes) and an unlimited amount of food such as bird feeders and garbage cans which allows them to survive. Looking at these litters of young animals, we have found the average to be three female to one male. Each one of these females will breed shortly after being pushed out on their own and the cycle goes on and on.

"Great, my house is a hollow tree now what do I do?"

There are some products that claim to drive animals from your home and some Internet tips such as putting moth balls in your attic (DO NOT USE THE MOTH BALLS! It is ineffective and when your attic warms in spring and summer, your entire home will smell of them.) And as far as the sprays and gadgets that are supposed to drive animals from your home, if they worked I as a owner of a wildlife removal firm, would use them. The savings in labor alone would assure that. So save your money and stay away from gimmicks and gadgets. The only true method is removal of offending animals is accomplished through hand removal or trapping of offending animals in humane traps. This is a process that needs to be thought out. Factors such as are the young able to travel if their mother is removed, disposition of wildlife once caught, local and state rules and laws and many others. If you are are not willing to research all aspects and then implement all needed procedures to be effective, humane and legal you should contact a professional. The increased cost of jobs we have to fix after a botched attempt should be taken into account. It is much more cost effective to have us trap live squirrels than have us crawl around in an attic looking for squirrels that have been killed with rat poison. We have to do this a number of times each year due to people thinking that these animals will leave home for water. A poisoned animal is a sick animal and where do you go when sick...to bed and these animals bed is in your attic. So Please Don't Use Poison! The smell of dead animals is much worse than the noise of live animals running around your attic.

"They're out now what?"

Repair! Unfortunately your attic now smells like a den site and most animals are scent trackers. Our mantra here at Advantage Wildlife Removal is " Inspect, Remove and Repair". Any professional wildlife control firm should offer a solution so this problem doesn't re-occur. Most repairs of animal entry into attic requires ladder/roof work to correct, so if you take this on yourself be careful.

If you use a professional, make sure they are licensed, insured and members of NWCOA (National Wildlife Control Operator Association) and as usual feel free to contact us at Advantage Wildlife Removal for any wildlife issues or questions 513-553-1888 info@advantage-wr.com or www.thewildlifepros.com www.advantage-wr.com