How to Get Rid of Animals in Your Attic for Good
Your attic doesn’t have to be the local wildlife’s playhouse
Hearing a knocking sound that seems like it’s coming from the inside of your home can be a little alarming when you know it’s not your washing machine. Unfortunately, uncommon sounds in your home are common when you have animals in your attic.
This guide will help you identify any unwanted guests you may have and teach you how to get rid of an animal in your attic, safely and humanely, by a pro.
Signs of an Animal in Your Attic
Imagine this scenario—you’re turning in for the night, tucked into your bed, when suddenly, you hear a scratching sound above you. Are you dreaming already? Most likely not—unfortunately, that’s one of the signs of an animal in your attic.
You may or may not notice any unusual things in your home during the hustle and bustle of the day, but you’re almost certain you’ll notice them at night. Things like unusual noises, holes in your drywall, and even unusual smells can all indicate unwelcome animals in your attic. If you notice any of the below signs of a pest infestation, you might need to prepare for animal removal.
Nests
Many animals make nests when they’re planning on having young. You’ve probably seen a bird nest before made of twigs, leaves, or grasses, but rodents and squirrels also make them. In an attic, you might find nests made of paper, insulation, or packing materials.
Disturbed or Chewed Insulation
Finding chewed, shredded, or otherwise disturbed insulation usually indicates squirrels or raccoons. These animals are likely using these materials to build a nest.
Vocalizations
High-pitched squeaking sounds could be made by mice, rats, bats, or even birds. Bats may also make a chittering noise.
Raccoons are known to make a lot of different vocalizations—possibly 200 distinct sounds! Adults can squeak, chitter, purr, growl, chirp, snarl, whimper, and more, and they can sometimes sound like other animals. A raccoon scream can sound like a screech owl, fighting raccoons sound similar to fighting cats, and baby raccoon noises can be mistaken for bird sounds. You probably associate hissing with snakes, but raccoons and opossums also hiss when scared or angry.
Disturbed or Ripped-Apart Ducts
Raccoons are curious animals and they’re large enough to damage ducts in ways smaller critters usually don’t.
Scurrying Noises
The pitter-patter of little feet moving about quickly is a sign of mice, rats, squirrels, or other small rodents.
Droppings or Urine
Finding urine stains or droppings is a sure sign that critters have been around. Taking a closer look can help you figure out what kind. Rat, mouse, squirrel, and bat droppings are small pellets that look like dark grains of rice, while raccoon feces look similar to those of a cat.
Scratching Noises
Many critters have claws they use to burrow and mark their territory, so hearing scratching sounds from your attic could mean you have mice, rats, squirrels, raccoons, or opossums.
How to Get Rid of Animals in Your Attic
The sooner you address possible animals in your attic, the easier it will be to get rid of them. It’s important not to panic, even though the idea of having an unwanted guest in your attic isn’t pleasant. Here’s where to start.
1. Contact a Wildlife Removal Service
Live traps and one-way doors are common methods for removing animals from your attic, but we highly recommend that you contact a wildlife removal company to fix this problem for you. A licensed and insured local wildlife removal company has the experience and equipment needed to remove animals from your home safely and humanely. They’ll know what animals are in your attic, what removal method is best, where to release the removed animals, and what you should do to keep them out for good.
2. Keep Everyone in Your Home Away From the Attic
While you’re waiting for pros to remove the animals from your attic, ensure your family and pets stay far away from them.
Animals such as raccoons and squirrels will attack if they feel threatened, so it’s best to stay clear of them until a pro can safely remove them from your home. Raccoons, skunks, and squirrels can carry rabies, so ensuring your family’s safety is top priority until the unwanted animal is gone.
3. Thoroughly Clean Your Attic After Wildlife Removal
Cleaning your attic from top to bottom after your wildlife professional has removed the pests is one of the best ways to avoid future infestations. How can this keep animals out of your attic? Simply put, some wild animals—like rats—are attracted to poop.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), you need to remove the potentially contaminated urine, droppings, and nesting, and finally, decontaminate the air. Here are the steps to cleaning your attic:
Let fresh air in for at least 30 minutes prior to cleaning for adequate ventilation
Use proper safety gloves and dust masks and create a solution made from one part bleach and nine parts water or any household disinfectant
Saturate any urine, droppings, and nesting that you’ve found and remove them from your attic
Mop your floors using your chosen disinfectant
Remove any exposed insulation
Clean any areas and belongings impacted by animals
4. Seal Up Entry Points
After your attic has been thoroughly disinfected, you’ll need to seal up the entry point (or points) where the unwanted guests entered your attic in the first place. To keep your attic free of animals, you’ll need to seal up every entry point, including:
Missing or ill-fitting attic vent covers
An uncovered chimney flue or a damaged chimney
Damaged roof joints or joints with gaps
Gaps between overhanging rooftops and exterior fascia
Gaps around any cables, lightning rods, or drains that enter your attic space
Rooftops with severe damage from storms or other sources
Nearby trees with branches that allow easy access to the roof
Steel wool can be used to fill minor gaps, and sheet metal can be used to cover larger ones. Be sure to seek the advice of a professional before closing off attic vents or other openings. In many homes, attic vents are necessary to improve airflow to the attic. Without them, condensation can build up, causing serious problems like mold and rot.
5. Fix Any Damage the Animals Caused
Many animals can cause lasting damage in attics that will need to be addressed. This can include:
Torn insulation or insulation that’s contaminated with droppings and urine
Floorboards damaged by guano (if you had bats in the attic)
Damaged HVAC ductwork, wiring, or PVC pipes caused by gnawing or scratching
Attic storage containers that have been chewed through
If you’re unsure what damage you may have, phoning a handyman near you is a great first step. They can assess your attic and can either take on repairs themselves or refer you to someone who can help. Regardless, any damage in your attic is too much, so it’s best to attend to it as soon as possible.
How to Get Rid of Animals in Your Attic by Type
Unwanted animals in your attic are noisy and highly destructive, tearing apart insulation, stored belongings, and the like in order to build nests or search for food. Many wild animals carry diseases that can spread to pets and people, and the access points the animals use to get into your attic could be raising your heating bill or letting in moisture that causes structural damage. Here’s how to get rid of a few common critters.
Rats
Rats often go where there’s clutter and water available to them. They get into your attic by chewing through small holes until they’re big enough for them to fit through or by entering through uncovered attic vents. The best way to get rid of rats in your attic is to eliminate access points, use traps, and get help from a wildlife removal pro for an extensive infestation. You can also reduce hiding spots by eliminating cardboard boxes and any other easy places for them to nest.
Squirrels
Since squirrels nest in warm, dry areas, they might target an attic. Squirrels in the attic can chew their way in from the vents, roof, or chimney. If you notice missing insulation around the eves in your attic, squirrels are the likely culprit. Seal up small gaps with steel mesh and use a squirrel exclusion door at their main entry point, usually in a soffit. The exclusion door allows squirrels to exit but not re-enter. After a few days, you should hear no more scurrying, and you can remove the exclusion door and seal up the gap.
Raccoons
Most often, it’s mother raccoons that take up shelter in your attic because they’re looking for a warm, dry place to give birth. Raccoons can get into your attic through openings in your roof, shingles, and eaves, or even by creating their own opening where they can. These critters hate loud noises and lights, so install utility lights and a radio in your attic to encourage raccoons to leave. Once they’re gone, seal up any possible entry points to keep them from returning.
Bats
Bats can get into your home via a hole that’s the length of a dime. So if there are gaps in your soffit or framing, they can squeeze their way inside. They might also use a damaged roof, vent, chimney, or siding.
Like squirrels, bats are often looking for a warm, dry place to hide out, and they can be removed in a similar fashion. Use a bat valve on the largest opening you can find and then close up all other openings—the bats will leave on their own and not be able to return. Once they’re gone, remove the bat valve and seal up the opening.
Opossums
Opossums are excellent climbers, and they typically enter your attic because they’re looking for a safe place to birth their young. Opossums are often protected, so a trap for catch and release is often your only option. Because opossums are difficult to remove and might be subject to special rules, you should seek help from a professional when removing them.
Birds
While looking for a place to have babies, birds can enter your attic and create a nest. They’ll use any opening they can find to get into your attic, whether it’s from your roof, chimney, vent, or soffits. Depending on what type of bird is in your attic and where you live, the rules for bird nest removal can vary widely. Most birds can be shooed out through an open window, but if you don’t have a window, it can be difficult to get them to leave. Having some professional help when dealing with birds in your attic is a good idea.
Snakes
Snakes…in an attic? Climbing snakes like the yellow rat snake can actually climb up to 60 feet and enter your home through small holes in your roof when hunting rodents. The best way to solve your snake problem is to get rid of their food source—the rats or mice that are also living there. You can also try a catch-and-release snake trap, as well as sealing up any gaps that the snakes can enter through.
How to Prevent Unwanted Animals in Your Attic
Whether you’ve previously had an animal infestation or not, knowing how to prevent animals from entering your attic will help mitigate any unwanted headaches (both physically and metaphorically), as well as potential repair bills.
Perform annual attic inspections: Have a local home inspector inspect your attic annually or biannually to stay up-to-date on routine maintenance and repair minor cracks and other damage before they become a way in for pests.
Trim tree branches: Trimming or removing tree branches near your home can help restrict access to your roof, making it less likely for unwanted animals to sneak in.
Deter animals: To help keep animals out of your attic, make your home less inviting to them in the first place. Keep your trash cans secured, avoid leaving pet food outside the home, and clean up any fruit or nuts that may have fallen off a tree regularly.
Give the animals a new shelter: If you have a recurring problem with unwanted animals, like squirrels or birds, you can provide them with new shelter to take up residency in, like a birdhouse or a squirrel nesting box. Make sure you place these in trees that are the furthest away from your house (but still on your property line).
DIY vs. Hiring a Pro
If you know what type of animal has taken up residence in your attic, it can be tempting to save money by setting traps yourself. But when it comes to wildlife, some states have laws about the types of animals you can trap and where you can release them. And trapping is only part of the solution—you also need to find and fix the access points animals are using to sneak in, which is a task best left to professionals. Not to mention that some animals could carry rabies (or other diseases), and you don’t want to gamble on that risk.
How Much Does Professional Animal Removal Cost?
For larger wild animals like raccoons, opossums, and skunks, you’ll likely need to contact a wildlife removal specialist. Wildlife removal costs depend on the species (skunks, for example, cost more than raccoons for understandable reasons). A simple trap-and-go job may only cost around $85, while a complex removal of multiple animals (a squirrel nest, for example) could run as high as $1,500.
A pest control company can deal with more run-of-the-mill pests like mice and rats. Pest control visits cost about $172 on average. However, you may need multiple visits or more expensive services to fully deal with a problem.
Frequently Asked Questions
As a general rule, if you hear an animal in your attic, don’t assume it will stay there. Animals are drawn to warmth and food sources, which could lead them to other parts of your house. In particular, it’s likely that small pests such as rats and mice that only need tiny gaps to squeeze through will end up in your walls and ductwork. Larger animals like raccoons may be limited to an enclosed attic.
It can be difficult to know what type of animal is in your attic until you see it. But several clues can help you narrow down the suspects:
Sounds: Smaller animals like rats and mice make scurrying and tapping/gnawing sounds. Larger animals like raccoons and opossums make louder clambering noises. Also, note when animals are noisy: Squirrels are active during the day, while rats are busiest at night.
Droppings: Rats and mice leave small, rice-shaped droppings (the rat’s version is significantly larger). Bigger droppings belong to larger critters like raccoons. As long as you’re not squeamish, an image search can help you identify what you’re seeing in your attic.
When in doubt, take photos of damage or other evidence and show them to an experienced pest control pro.
No, poison isn’t the best way to deal with animals in your attic. It’s unlikely to completely eradicate the problem, especially if you don’t take care of access points. Also, poisoned animals may die and decay in the attic, causing noxious odors.
Some animals may leave the attic before the poison kills them, which could lead to nearby pets or other wildlife eating the animals and becoming poisoned themselves. Ultimately, it’s better to avoid using poison and contact a professional instead.
Some stores sell smoke bombs to drive animals out of spaces, but we don’t recommend you use them, especially in an attic. The smoke can be toxic to humans or pets that may accidentally inhale it. Meanwhile, critters can easily escape the smoke by temporarily leaving the attic, only to return via their usual entry points after the smoke clears.