Squirrels are a cute creature, but their infestation in your home can be a big problem. If you live in a house where you have plenty of trees and squirrels around. Squirrels can carry fleas and ticks which can be easily transmitted to your pets and even to you. They eat birdseed and even ruins your growing vegetables. Squirrel are not easy to catch. The most common reason they seek shelter inside the house is to have baby squirrels. Like other rodents, squirrel tends to leave their feces and urine where they inhabit, it creates salmonella risk. If a squirrel has infested your home, removing them without causing harm can be done. If you want to get rid of squirrels, learn how to control squirrels to come inside your house.
Ways to Get Rid of Squirrels:
1.) Seal off the Attic to Remove Squirrels
They take entry in your house mainly through holes and another medium. So try to patch up all the holes and cover all the wide spaces that are enough for squirrels to get through. Cover your chimney from cap or wire mesh fencing. Cover vents with wire mesh fencing.
Patch up all the chewed out holes from where they take an entry or exit, except one. You will need one hole to provide the exit to a squirrel, but remember to cover a hole after a couple of weeks, when problem gets stop. Make sure to cover all the openings between the attic and the rest of your house. A stubborn squirrel will find its way to come into your home if attic is no longer a welcome place to them.
2.) Trap to Get Rid of Squirrels
Use a small, live cage trap and set it in a corner and the hidden area because squirrels are more likely to approach the trap if it is out of their way rather than in the middle of the attic. Use only small traps, sometimes they get panic and hurt themselves. As a general guideline, a trap that is about 6 by 18 inches is said to be the good size trap. You can easily purchase traps at hardware stores. Each trap might be settled differently, read instruction and learn to use a trap, usually you will need to position swing bar trigger mechanism in such a way so that when the squirrels enter the cage, closing and the opening of the gate will lock down as soon as possible.
The squirrel will not go near the trap until you will not lure them with peanut butter, soda crackers or bread crust. Make sure that food is placed far enough inside the cage so that squirrels will have to enter the cage to grab food. Keep the traps in place until you catch you all the squirrels. Leave the trap in place for at least an additional week, even after catching all the squirrels for more assured.
3.) Relocate to Get Rid of Squirrels
After trapping a squirrel, move away from your home and relocate them. Move the squirrels roughly 10 to 20 miles away from your home, it will be enough to discourage them from coming back. Check the attic for the baby squirrels. It could be possible that you caught a mother squirrel, her babies will feel helpless and die from the hunger which you don’t want. Make sure to also relocate the baby along with the mother. Wear thick and heavy gloves when releasing a squirrel from the trap because it can even bite you, if it seems angry, release it from the distance by attaching a rope or chord to the release mechanism.
4.) Scare Squirrels with Sound
You can leave the radio turn on inside the attic to scare them with sound or you can also use ultrasonic repellent. If you are using radio, leave it on the talk station show so that squirrels will constantly hear the human voice. It doesn’t need to be tough enough for you to hear, but it must be loud enough for the squirrels. This could have limited usefulness if you are dealing with squirrels.
The ultrasonic repellent is a very good option to get rid of squirrels because it produces a high decibel noise that can only hear by a small animal. It will make your attic an unbearable place for squirrels, but it could also bother other animals in your home even though you can’t hear it.
5.) Flashlights to Get Rid of Squirrels
Install flashing strobe light in the attic to keep squirrels away. Constant light in the attic would be enough to keep squirrels away, especially those that are not habitual to being around people. In some tougher cases, a pulsating strobe will work, bright flashes of light will startle a squirrel and cause it to run off. Make sure that squirrel takes a baby with it. If not, you need to trap the baby and take them outside.
6.) Ammonia-Soaked Rags to Remove Squirrels
Wet a few old rags with an ammonia and place the rags around the squirrel suspected area. According to the theory goes,the strong pungent smell of ammonia will drive the squirrels away from your attic. After squirrels have gone out of your attic, run electric fans to clear the air inside the space. Ammonia can burn your nasal passage and cause another problem. So it’s better to clear out the air after using this method. Keep away your children and pets from entering the attic while this method in use.
7.) Scatter Mothballs to Get Rid of Squirrels
Place the mothballs near all the possible entrance of squirrels or other detectable signs of infestation. However, there is no scientific evidence proving or supporting the use of mothballs as a squirrel repellent. Some believe that mothballs works as squirrel repellent while others believe that they do not. To maximize the possibility of success, use mothballs with traps.
Modern mothballs are made up of para- dichlorobenzene, but older mothballs contain naphthalene which is inflammable. So use precaution when using mothballs. Keep your children and pets away from the mothballs using area.
8.) Detter Squirrel with Capsaicin
Mix 1 bottle of hot sauce with 4 liters of water. Spread the mixture on tree bark or another area where squirrel chews. Experts suggest that it is the last option if you are not able to get rid of squirrels, but it is a very effective way. It could be harmful to human and even your pets. It is also a less humane way that simply makes you less hospitable. First, research the flower and plants in your garden. Then You can apply capsaicin mixture treatment to the plant to deter squirrels from taking them for food. But if you found your plants and flower sensitive, so do apply this. it can ruin them.
9.) Cut Trees Branches and Avoid Feeding Bird
Cut the branches of trees in your yard to get rid of squirrels. Make sure that they should be more than 6 feet away from your house. For larger trees with thick and heavy branches, you could call for professional tree trimming service.
Avoid placing a bird feeder in your garden if you don’t want squirrels because nut and seeds are squirrels favorite food. That will be easy food for them and will attract more squirrel also. Try to buy a squirrel- proof bird feeders. If you don’t want to lose your bird feeder, you can buy a safflower seed mix. Squirrels don’t like that seed. You can also try white prosecco millet seed and nyjer thistle.
10.) Stay Away from the House
Stay away from the house for at least one or two hours and leave the escape root. Take your pet with you. This will prevent any accidental interaction between your pet and the squirrel. When they will realize that no one else is in the house, they will leave through the escape route you’ve left open for squirrel.
Some dogs are bred to hunt woodland creatures and work extra hard to get rid of the squirrel in your home. leaving this kind of pet in your house could result in it escaping the squirrel.
