Squirrels in the Attic in Rochdale, Oldham and Bury.
The grey squirrel population in the North West U.K. has rocketed over the last 20 years to the extent that they are now a major pest dealt with by Squirrels in Attic Pest Control
The grey squirrels which we see in our gardens (Sciurus carolinensis) are not native to the U.K., having been imported here less than 200 years ago from America
Like other members of the family Sciuridae, the Grey Squirrel is a hoarder; it staches food away in lots of small caches for subsequent recovery. Some hoards are temporary, especially those made near the site of a sudden glut of food.
Other stores are more permanent and are not collected until weeks later. It has been estimated that each squirrel makes several thousand hoards each season. They have very accurate spatial memory for the locations of these hoards, and use far and near landmarks to locate them. Smell is used when the squirrel is within a short distance of the cache.
The nest of the squirrel is called a dray (or drey) and it is standard for the female to have two litters per year, with two to four babies each.
They can be minor problems, digging bulbs and taking food intended for birds but become major pests when they enter our properties.
It is increasingly common for Trafford Pest Control to call out to homes where a dray has been built in a loft or attic space.
Squirrels are true rodents and as such have teeth which never stop growing; the very word rodent comes from the Latin word rodere which means to gnaw and this they do very well indeed.
It is rare to visit a roof space where a dray has been found and find that they have not damaged electrical wires, indeed it is estimated that forty percent of fires without an obviously attributable cause may have been started by rodents chewing wiring.
Unfortunately they can also chew through water-pipes, especially with the modern movement towards plastic push-fit piping.
As if that was not enough, many household insurance policies do not cover damage caused by vermin so if a squirrel floods your home by gnawing through a water pipe in the roof void you may find yourself without cover.
Removing Squirrels in Loft needs a professional, not least in as much as the law regarding squirrels is ever changing. You cannot simply get a packet of rat poison from your local store and deal with them that way as you would be committing an offence.
Furthermore you cannot trap them and release them some distance away, quite apart from the fact that removing a squirrel from the area of its food hoards probably starve it to death, it is also a criminal offence under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 under which it is illegal to release a grey squirrel in in the British Isles.
That pertains also to rescuing and/or releasing injured squirrels.
In most cases trapping is the the only option and this must be done in a specified manner with routine, timed inspections of the traps.
Trapped squirrels are then humanely dispatched.
If you have a problem with squirrels in Lancashire, Cheshire or Manchester call us on 01257 230637
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