Owning a home comes with a lot of responsibility and potential problems. The benefits of owning a home are tremendous, but you don’t get to call the landlord when you hear strange noises in the attic. There are a wide variety of ways critters can get into your attic; they are crafty creatures that can fit through small spaces. Animals such as birds, squirrels, chipmunks, and raccoons may work their way into your attic to find adequate shelter and protection from the elements.
Once in your attic, they may build their nests, bring their food home to eat, reproduce creating an even bigger critter problem, and die, leaving you with an animal corpse problem.
Animals living in your attic can cause many problems. They can destroy your insulation or items you have stored in your attic. They will leave droppings everywhere, which can create health problems, as well as unpleasant odors over time. They may also die while in your attic, which will also cause unpleasant odors and potential health problems. They bring their food back to your attic, which will create a mess and attract other animals. Once in your attic, they may also venture down into your house.
Another significant risk is that the squirrels may chew on wires and cause shorts, power loss, or even worse, a fire. When the animals are removed, it is essential to have all the wires, vents, and other materials in the attic. If there is visible damage to any of the electrical wires, it will need fixing as quickly as possible to maintain the safety of the house.
Even the cutest squirrels can be dangerous if they feel threatened or trapped, and they can carry diseases. It is crucial to avoid trying to remove the squirrel or another critter on your own. There are traps you can buy to attempt to remove them, but that is a dangerous process. Additionally, if you do manage to trap the animals safely, you will need to transport them then somewhere to be safely released. Trying to transport and release the animal presents more opportunities for injury, and depending on where you live, there may be legal barriers to releasing the animals.
There are animal trapping services that safely and humanely remove the animals from your attic. They will save you the stress, aggravation, and danger of doing it yourself, and provide you with the peace of mind knowing you no longer have wild animals in your home.
Once the animals are gone, you can clean up the mess left behind, get a good look at the damage created, and figure out how they got into your attic. If there is damage to the attic insulation or structure, it is vital to get that fixed by professionals quickly as it can negatively impact your energy usage and utility bills. If insulation is missing or chewed up, it will not be able to protect the interior of your home from the heat or cold, as well as it should. Additionally, if the animals were crawling through or living in your insulation, there could be food remnants or fecal matter stuck in the insulation that needs removing.
Once you find where the animals got into your attic, you will need to fix that as well. If the animal was released within the same general area, it could find its way back to your attic. Another potential problem would be other animals finding their way in through the same hole. If there are food or remnants left behind, new animals will be able to smell that and make their way to your attic.
