Squirrel Removal: Are the Pros Really Best?

Need squirrel removal in your hometown? We service over 500 USA locations! Click here to hire us in your town and check prices - updated for year 2020.

I know we’re meant to say this (being the professionals and all), but wildlife rehabilitators or pest animal removal experts really are the best people for the job if you have a wild animal invasion. Why? Because not only do they have the right information to get the job done safely, humanely, and quickly, but they’ll have al the right tools and equipment for the job, as well as a better understanding of the laws and licenses required for such a job.



Wildlife removal experts or rehabilitators should be licensed and insured. If they are not, any removal work that they complete might be unlawful in your state, and you may also find that any accidental damage to your property will not be covered. It is down to you to make sure that you are hiring the right people for the job, so make sure you ask about the appropriate credentials.

In terms of the squirrel itself, the animal isn't really known for being one of the hardest to trap, so you will more than likely find that getting it into one for you to then remove is relatively easy. With the right trap and bait, and also the right trap positions, it won't be long until you have captured a squirrel ... unless you manage to capture something else in your trap instead, such as a cat from the house down the street. (Or even your own!)

Although you might believe that actually trapping the animal is going to be the hardest part of the journey, that’s often not the case for squirrels. One of the hardest parts is trying to work out what you should do with the squirrel once you have captured it. In certain states, you are not permitted to just go outside to your local park and let it free, and if the park is too close to your home (within 10-15 miles), the squirrel will be able to find its way back “home” again quickly. This means that euthanasia (in some places) is the only lawfully permitted option, and also leaves you with another predicament — how will you do it?

When you hire in a professional wildlife rehabilitator or removal technician, you are hiring a full service, which means so much more than just trapping the creature and then releasing it or euthanizing it. They will tell you how the squirrel managed to get into the building, or what might be attracting it back to your yard time and time again. Depending on the job you have agreed with your removal technician, they may also seal up the holes, as well as clean away and repair any damage that has been caused if they can do so. This is why the professionals need insurance — to cover them for working on your most prized asset — your home.

Traps will be set if required, or exclusion devices might be put in place, and then, when the animal has been either trapped or evicted, the holes will then be sealed.

Wildlife removal experts will also help you to clean up any mess that the animal left behind, and we’re not talking about a bit of garden debris; we're talking about feces and urine, as well as other biological material. There could even be dead animals in among the live ones, particularly if an infestation has been left to its own devices for some time.

When you do the job of squirrel removal yourself, there is a chance that you might miss bits. Any left-behind feces, for example, could easily encourage the spread of diseases such as Salmonellosis, Tularemia, and even Leptospirosis; all of which can be deadly to the people who live in that building. This is especially the case if they are very young or very old.

As well as making sure that you repair the damage, remove the animal, seal up the holes, and remove any waste material, you will also need to look at your yard to see how you can modify it to make it less attractive to a squirrel. Once again, this is all information that the wildlife experts can give you, with years of experience and knowledge behind them.

Of course, the one thing that we can't fail to mention about using professional wildlife rehabilitators to remove your wild animal problem, is that they will have ALL the right tools for the job. When it comes to squirrel removal, the list can be extensive. Snare poles, live cage traps, exclusion devices ... and that’s on top of the protective and safety equipment that you might need, ladders, cleaning and repair items.

By the time you have paid out for all of that stuff, you might as well have just thrown your hard earned cash an expert to do the job for you.

Pest control or wildlife control exterminators for squirrels - what’s the difference?

Although both names might come up when you do a quick internet search for, "how to get rid of squirrels from my home," one of these companies — pest control or wildlife control exterminators — will do a considerably better job than the other.



Wildlife control exterminators, as the name would suggest, will rehabilitate wildlife where possible.

Pest control, on the other hand, control the situation using slightly different means, usually something chemical based and that relies on death. Cockroaches, fleas and flies, etc., can all be fairly easily resolved using pesticides or insecticides, chemically-based or otherwise. Sadly, wildlife, including squirrels, cannot be dealt with in the same way.

Point number 1: there isn’t a pesticide that works on squirrels.

Point number 2: there isn’t a poison that works on squirrels, either.

Point number 3: there isn’t a repellent for squirrels on the market that actually works.

That kind of puts an end to almost all of your squirrel removal plans, doesn’t it?

I know we’re meant to say that — being wildlife control exterminators ourselves and all — but they really are the right way to go when you have a wildlife problem, and especially when you have a squirrel problem. There are a number of laws that you must look up before you take action, and depending on what state you live in, there many be restrictions on the kind of traps you can buy and use, as well as methods of removal that are most definitely not allowed, such as using poison. You might require a permit or a license, and some states even permit the removal of squirrels by licensed control exterminators only.

Go back to the Squirrel Removal page, or learn tips to do it yourself with my How to Get Rid of Squirrels guide.