Emergency Animal Control in Columbus

Chris showed up right on time. We were able to get out of the house and on about our business. He & Jay spent about an hour and a half fogging, spraying, and baiting our home for cockroaches. In just the first 24 hours the change was dramatic. They are returning this week and every two weeks for a while until the nasty bugs are goneshow more

Varment Guard responded immediately by deploying a specialist who set two traps. Within 24 hours 1 raccoon was caged. A technician came back on the same day to remove the creature. 2.days later another raccoon was captured and removed same day. Traps remained in place for 2 weeks after the initial captures with a company tech checking traps each day until the contract period had expiredshow more

From the first meeting, Critter Control was friendly and professional. My attic is a difficult space and the damage was quite extensive. They inspected the area, took pictures, and had a quote withine 24 hours. Compared to other quotes, their cost was slightly lower but the degree of professionalism would have persauded me to higher them if if their cost was higher.They arrive on time, cleaned up after themselves, and worked with my schedule to get the job done. If anyone is ever unfortunate to have racoonslive in their attic for an extended period of time, Critter Control is the company to callshow more

He went over the pricing with me and came out in two days. He inspected around the whole house and found another area, a woodpecker damaged hole, that needed repairs as well. I agreed to have him work on that area as well and he was very prepared and took action right there. The estimate was very detailed and had no surprises. He also gave his phone number and remained available 24 hours if something came up. He was very responsive, competent, very efficiently organized, was very prompt, and in 4 days he had the problems resolved. He was a very nice person, very accommodating, and I would highly recommend himshow more

We had a bat in our bedroom late on a Saturday night. We called several so-called "24-hour" pest numbers. Creature Catchers was the first and only one to respond. They sent out a catcher early Sunday morning and he caught the animal in about 10 seconds. He had a container with him to preserve the bat until it could be released in an appropriate area. Bats are protected and must be handled humanely. Releasing one into sub-freezing temperatures alone would certainly prove fatal. Creature Catchers was planning to introduce the bat to a known colony where it would survive. Yes, it is a bit expensive, but it is peace of mind to have it taken care of by a professional. I have neither the reflexes or nor eyesight to try that on my ownshow more

I selected Stryker from Angie's because they were a local company, not a national franchise. They responded promptly and set two 'Have a Heart' traps at both ends of the deck. The first groundhog was captured literally within ten minutes. The second groundhog was captured later in the evening. The traps were reset each time and after no additional captures after a week I called them and they came to pick up their traps. One might think that if capturing groundhogs is this easy, why don't I do it myself? What are you going to do with the varmint once you catch it? Are you ready for an emergency room visit if the animal bites you? It is just not as simple as Stryker made it seem to be. The folks at Stryker are very efficient, very professional, and perhaps the most earnestly pleasant service providers I have dealt with in two decades. If you have a pest problem, you should strongly consider using Stryker to resolve your problem. They provide several discounts to Angie's List subscribers. They are well worth the cost regardless of the discountshow more

I had been having trouble with groundhogs digging near the foundation of my house. They had 3-6 holes in the front and back of my house and I was tired of filling in the holes. Capital City has provided ongoing termite extermination for a couple of years and when they came to inspect for termites, they noticed the hole under the front porch and I decided to find out how I might get rid of the groundhogs. The serviceman set two traps. He quoted a fee of $75 every time they came out to pick up an animal. I was told to call right away when an animal was caught. They were not allowed to leave an animal in the trap more than 24 hours. The trap is humane and doesn't hurt the animal. They take the animal away into the country and release it. About a month went by without any animals being trapped. The serviceman came by again and put some peanut butter in the traps. The next day a groundhog was caught. I called and they came out to get it right away. The next day a raccoon was caught. Again, they came out right away. Another groundhog was caught. Late in the afternoon another groundhog was caught. Even though they were about to close, the serviceman came out to get the animal. I had decided not to have any more traps set, having caught 4 animals. The serviceman suggested a method of finding out if any animals were still using the holes, without having to fill them in with dirt. He took both traps with him. When I received the bill for the services, I was surprised that they charged me $15 less for each pickup than had been quoted in the estimate. I was very pleased with the servicemen's promptness in picking up the animals, their friendly helpful manner toward me in person and on the phone and their helpful advice. I got the results I had hoped for and was very pleased with the service that was providedshow more

I called Stryker and spoke with Emily. She explained how the service worked, that they'd bring out cage traps, survey the area for openings to the nest, and set them. She also explained their charges. I set up an appointment. When Amber got here, I showed her the two openings to the nest. She demonstrated the cages and how to set the mechanisms and told me that groundhogs like apple slices. So we set two traps. They also explained to me that, according to Ohio law, the cage traps needed to be checked every 24 hours. That was my responsibility. Two days later, we had our first critter but it wasn't a groundhog, it was an opossum. So, I called. They promptly picked up the opossum, telling me that he'd have a new home out in the country by nightfall. Then 3 days passed before I had another critter. It was another opossum. Two hours after the opossum was picked up, I also had the groundhog. So, they came again to pick up the groundhog. Then two days later I had another opossum. That was the last of the critters from the underground nest. I did manage to get some squirrels in the cage traps but a quick call to Stryker assured me that I could safely let them go without harm to either them or me and reset the traps. I kept the traps baited and ready for a week after the last opossum was captured just to assure myself that there were no other critters in the nest, checking them frequently to make sure that they were empty or that a squirrel captured by mistake was released. I was pleased that they didn't rush me at the end to pick up the traps; they trusted my judgment about how long to leave the traps out at the garage. Everyone at Stryker was just wonderful to work with. I had never had to call a pest control company so I didn't know what to expect. But I was treated well by everyone that I spoke with. Both John and Amber who came to my home are really personable, professional people and they obviously care for the humane treatment of the animals while solving my problem of unwanted guests. And they were very familiar with my neighborhood, having worked with some homeowners nearby. The bill was reasonable and they fully explained my responsibilities under Ohio law to me. They provided assistance to me by telephone when I found the first squirrel in the cage trap and they gave me the confidence to release them myself. But the option was always available at a standard charge for them to come release the animal. Knowing that they could back me up if something went terribly wrong with a skittish animal was very helpfulshow more

Jerry actually was not my first choice, but I'm very glad I found him. I had already called A All Animal Control of Columbus several times trying to make an appointment, because their ad mentioned "relocation," and I was hoping the groundhog could be removed without having to kill it. I was able to speak with the operator at A All Animal Control, but the technicians were busy, so I tried again early the next morning and ended up in voicemail. On my third attempt the operator transferred me to voice mail again. On my fourth try I left a message in voicemail, but never got a call back. I still haven't heard from them to this day. I read Jerry's reviews on Angie's List, and decided to call him, because he seemed honest and reasonable. I knew from my research that sometimes a groundhog can do extensive damage to a home's foundation, and I had also seen that some animal control websites made it sound as if any groundhog removal necessitated expensive preventive measures to avoid future problems. I was a bit leery of any service provider who seemed to assume that this was the rule rather than the exception. Three things impressed me about Jerry when we spoke on the phone. First, that he took time to discuss the situation in detail, without knowing whether or not I was actually going to hire him--or anyone else-- to remove the groundhog. I was wondering if perhaps I could let it stick around without risking any major problems. I actually like wildlife, and was hoping we might be able to coexist. Jerry explained -without a hard sell--what I could expect if the groundhog stayed around. Second, he volunteered that he would have to euthanize it if he caught it for me, because of the laws regarding nuisance wildlife. A groundhog released out in the country is a hazard for livestock, and obviously you can't release it in anyone else's backyard. I appreciated his honesty, and the fact that he took time to explain the law. Third, he also volunteered that in his experience, it was actually rare for a groundhog to damage the foundation of a home. I thought it over and decided I just was not willing to be the reason my neighbors ended up with groundhogs too, so I called him the next day and asked him if he could come out the following morning. Normally Jerry will come on each successive day to check and reset the trap, but he explained that if we wanted to handle it ourselves that would be fine, as long as we called every day to let him know we had checked it already. I appreciated knowing he was concerned about an animal that might stay in the trap longer than necessary, and that he wanted to avoid this. He showed my partner how to operate the trap himself, so we could close it every night to avoid catching a possum or raccoon. He even arranged some wood scraps that were sitting on the patio over the top of the cage so the little critter would have some protective shade if it got too hot. I offered to pay him before he left, but he said he'd rather wait until we caught it...and added that we might not, in which case he would only charge his initial fee to come out and set the trap. I was confident we'd get the groundhog that same day, as he had been hanging around the porch most of the week, and was a young one, and I expected him to walk right into the trap when he emerged from under the porch. As it turned out, my hunch was correct. We had our groundhog a couple of hours later. I called Jerry back, and as luck would have it, he was able to swing by almost right away, and he got the little guy in his truck just before the thunderstorm cut loose. I was grateful for that, as I felt bad enough already for having to be the reason the groundhog's life was cut short. If he had sat in that cage in the rain, I would have felt horrible. I know it's not always possible for someone to be there the minute you need them, but I think Jerry's basic decency and good character had more than a little to do with it. Anyone who bothers to provide shade for a creature he knows he will have to kill before the day is over has a good heart. My initial impression turned out to be right on target. I would heartily recommend Jerry to anyoneshow more