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Squirrel Removal
Getting a squirrel out of an attic is straightforward. Getting it out at the wrong time of year creates a much worse problem than the one you started with.
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The gist
Grey squirrels breed twice a year, roughly late winter and again in mid summer. Exclude a female during either window and the dependent young stay sealed in the wall or attic — where they die, where you cannot reach them, and where the smell runs for weeks. Establishing whether young are present comes before any hole gets closed.
Breeding
Twice a year
Before excluding
Establish if young are present
Method
One-way door, not trapping
After
Seal, or the next one moves in
Before you seal anything
The timing question comes first, and getting it wrong turns a straightforward job into an expensive one.
Stop
Young present
Scratching or chittering from one fixed spot rather than movement across the space, a female making repeated trips. Seal now and the young starve inside the wall where you can’t reach them.
Proceed
Adult traffic only
Movement across the roof space, activity at dawn and dusk, no sound from a fixed location. A one-way door and a proper seal ends it.
Different problem
Chewed wiring
They gnaw, and insulation off a live cable is a fire risk. That’s an electrician, not a wildlife operator, and it’s worth looking while you’re up there.
The timing question, first
This is the part that separates a job done properly from an expensive mistake. A female using your attic as a nest site during either breeding season will have young that cannot leave on their own. Fit a one-way door and she goes out, cannot get back, and they starve inside the structure.
Beyond being inhumane, the practical consequence is a decomposing animal in an inaccessible cavity, the smell for weeks, and flies. The fix at that point involves opening the ceiling or wall.
Signs of young: scratching or chittering from one fixed location rather than movement across the space, activity concentrated at particular times, and a female making repeated trips in and out. If there’s any doubt, the answer is to wait or to get someone to look, not to seal and hope.
One-way doors rather than traps
For an animal already inside a structure, exclusion beats trapping. A one-way door fitted over the entry point lets the occupant leave and prevents re-entry. No animal in a cage, no relocation question, no need for anyone to handle anything.
It requires finding the entry point, which is the actual skill. Squirrels use roofline gaps: where a soffit meets the fascia, the corner where two roof planes meet, a gable vent with damaged mesh, a rotten fascia board, the gap where a dormer joins. They also gnaw — an opening that looks too small may have been enlarged already, and fresh gnawing is a reliable sign of the route in use.
Sealing, and why it comes last
Once the structure is empty, seal properly. Squirrels chew, so the repair has to be something they can’t work at: metal flashing, hardware cloth, solid timber. Expanding foam alone is a draught seal and they go straight through it.
Then close the secondary routes, because an established entry point tends to be re-found. Trim branches that overhang or touch the roof — a squirrel jumping distance is longer than people assume, and a branch bridging a tree to the roofline is the highway the whole problem depends on. Cap the chimney. Screen gable and soffit vents.
Skipping the sealing means doing the removal again next season, which is the most common reason people pay for this twice.
Getting them out and keeping them out
Exclusion rather than trapping. No animal in a cage, no relocation question, nobody handling anything.
Establish whether there are young
Listen for sound from one fixed location. If there’s any doubt, wait or get someone to look — don’t seal and find out.
Find the entry
Soffit-to-fascia junctions, gable vents with damaged mesh, rotten fascia, dormer joins, roof plane corners. Fresh gnawing marks the route in use.
Fit a one-way door
Over the active entry. The occupant leaves and can’t return.
Wait, then remove it
Several days of no activity before you close anything permanently.
Seal in metal
Flashing, hardware cloth or solid timber. They chew — expanding foam alone lasts about a week.
Cut the route
Trim branches overhanging or touching the roof, cap the chimney, screen the vents. An established entry gets re-found otherwise.
Where they get in
Where this stops being a DIY job
Any suspicion of dependent young. Sealing at that point kills them inside the structure and hands you a decomposition problem in a cavity you can’t reach. If you hear activity from one fixed spot rather than movement, stop.
Anything at roofline height. Finding and sealing entries means being on a ladder at the eaves with both hands occupied, which is where the injuries in this work come from — not the animal.
Chewed wiring in the attic. Squirrels gnaw, and gnawed insulation on a live cable is a fire risk. That’s an electrician, not a wildlife operator.
Advertising disclosure: calls are routed to an independent local provider. We’re paid a referral fee for the call. You pay the provider, never us.
What separates a clean job
Timing
Raises the young question
Before you do. Anyone who doesn’t is planning to seal and find out.
Method
Fits one-way doors
No animal in a cage, no relocation question, no handling.
Materials
Seals in metal
They chew. Flashing, hardware cloth or solid timber — never foam alone.
Questions before you book
- How will you establish whether there are young before sealing?
- One-way door or trapping — and why?
- Is sealing included, and in what material?
- Will you check for chewed wiring while you’re in there?
- What’s the guarantee if they get back in?
The first question is the one that matters. Anyone who doesn’t raise the possibility of young before you do is planning to seal and find out.
Common questions
When should you not exclude squirrels?
During either breeding season, roughly late winter and mid summer. Exclude a female then and flightless young stay sealed in the wall, where they die and you can’t reach them.
How do squirrels get into an attic?
Roofline gaps — soffit and fascia junctions, gable vents with damaged mesh, rotten fascia, dormer joins, roof plane corners. They gnaw, so a small opening may already have been enlarged.
Is a one-way door better than trapping?
For an animal already inside a structure, yes. The occupant leaves and can’t return, nobody handles anything, and there’s no relocation question to answer.
How do I stop squirrels coming back?
Seal in material they can’t chew, then remove the route — trim branches overhanging or touching the roof, cap the chimney, screen the vents.
Hearing them from one fixed spot?
Trimming the branch that bridges the roof and capping the chimney are genuinely yours, and they remove the route. Finding every roofline entry, judging whether young are present, and working at the eaves are the parts worth paying for — and the timing question is the one that decides whether this goes well.
Call (877) 360-4657