However you may have some other ‘unwelcome’ guests at your New Years Eve party that you do not even know are there. We discussed the rats and mice at your house for Christmas in last week’s blog, these guys may be spotted on the ground floor of your house, but common household pests such as squirrels will often hideaway in your loft or in other parts of your home that are rarely used.

Unlike the rodents who are just looking for somewhere to ride out the colder the months, the squirrels are looking for somewhere to breed and raise their young. The squirrel is looking for somewhere warm and cosy like in your loft insulation. Unlike rats and mice, the squirrel won’t be seen through gnaw holes in food packaging, they will go out and get food and then bring it back to feed their young in your loft.

Squirrels may look cute and furry running up the trees in your local park, but when they are running back and forth across your loft all hours of the day and night or destroying your expensive loft insulation they will not be so cute and adorable.

If you think you have squirrels in your loft call in the pest removal experts to rid you of your squirrel infestation.

The post Have You Invited Squirrels Round For Your New Years Eve Party? appeared first on EPB Pest & Bird Control Services.

As the colder weather is upon us rats and mice that live outdoors will start to try and find a warmer and dryer shelter to stay, where there is plenty of food available. Sadly one of the places they may consider staying is your home. If you thought your mother in law was bad, just wait until you find a family of rats staying in your home! They will cause a lot more trouble than your mother in law could ever dream of!

A rat or mouse could enter your home through a gap or hole as small as a quarter of inch in diameter, for them this is the perfect entry point to the food, warmth and shelter than a rodent is looking for. Once the rodent is inside your home they can then start searching around for food while you are sleeping so you are none the wiser.

It is often said the best way to know if you have rodents in your home is by spotting their droppings but it seems that mice and rats have become wise to this. Research has proven that some clever mice and rats refrain from defecating or even eat their own faeces to avoid predators find them or even knowing they are there. Just because there are no droppings in your home is does not mean the rodents have found a new home.

If you have found corners of food packaging gnawed or nibbled chances are there are rodents in your home and you will need to call in a rodent removal company to get them out of your home! After all, it’s warm in your home and there is plenty of food, why would the rodents choose to go elsewhere?

The post Rodents Need Somewhere To Stay This Christmas Too! appeared first on EPB Pest & Bird Control Services.

It can be very upsetting to spend times and money on a bird feeder and bird seed and then sit at the window ready to watch the robin, cardinals, finches and doves feed from the bird feeder, only for a squirrel to come along and eat all the food, scaring the birds off in the meantime.

In this article we talk about different ways you can avoid feeding the greedy squirrels and instead keep the bird seed for the birds.

If you have a hanging bird feeder place it on a smaller branch or wire at least a few feet away from the nearest large branch so the squirrel is unable to leap to it but the birds can still get to it with ease. Alternatively you may choose to cut branches away from around the bird feeder to make it more of a challenge for the squirrel.

When purchasing bird feed for your bird feeder choose varieties of bird seed that birds like but squirrels don’t. If you speak to a reliable pest control company they will be able to advise you on the best bird seed to use.

Some people choose to add cayenne pepper to the bird seed, birds are not deterred by the heat of this spice but many squirrels will be.

You will also find squirrel proof bird feeders available in many garden centres and pet shops; these are built with pegs or smaller holes that make the feeder inaccessible for squirrels but are still suitable for birds to feed from.

If you would still like to feed squirrels but are concerned about the birds going unfed then why not put out separate food for squirrels – this will then leave the birds to feed in peace and you get to watch squirrels in your garden too!

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Humane Traps – Going into any DIY shop you will find some humane traps; these are traps that trap the rat without killing them. The issue with these traps is that you then need to get rid of the rat from the cage. This can be done by driving miles from your home and releasing them but you need to make sure that you drive away far enough that they do not return to your home.

Lethal Traps – These are also available from most DIY shops and are ideal for those people who don’t want to deal with live rats at all. There are lots of different lethal traps available to help you get rid of your rats, right through from the snap trap to the more costly traps that are electronic, these kill the rat instantly with an electric shock.

Cats – when you have cats prowling your home and garden you will be less likely to have a rat problem, this is a great idea if you like cats but if you’re not a cat fan then this may not be the option for you. It’s important to remember that your cats may bring you dead or half dead rats as a ‘gift’ and this may not always be the gift you always wanted.

Chemicals – these are available in DIY shops but you need to be really careful with the rodent removal products you chose. Some chemicals that can be purchased to remove rats from your home can be poisonous to humans and pets. If you are not used to handling strong and dangerous chemicals then it’s recommended that you chose a different method to rid your home of rats.

Fill The Gaps – if you have rats in your home you need to think about how they may be getting into your home. Rats can squeeze inside through some pretty small spaces especially when the smell of food is there tempting them. Make sure you go round your home and fill in all these holes to stop the rats coming back inside your house, keeping them outside where they belong.

Pest Control Professionals – If you panic at the sight of a rat then it may be wise to call in pest removal specialists to get rid of the rats for you? The pest control company will come into your home, see the size of your rodent problem and suggest different ways in which they can remove the rats from your home.

Which rat removal method takes your fancy?

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