Identifying and Sealing Wildlife Entry Points
Your home, especially in less-frequented areas like crawl spaces and attics provide perfect harborage for nuisance wildlife like raccoons, squirrels, snakes, skunks, and more. Not only can these critters damage your property, they can also create unsanitary environments and spread diseases like rabies. Wildlife enters your home through small gaps they often create with their claws and teeth. During the process of wildlife removal, it’s essential that these entry points are sealed to prevent the animals from getting inside your home. If you need wildlife removal services or a wildlife inspection to determine where these entry points are, contact the experts at Summit Wildlife Removal today at 703-884-2124!
Why Do Animals Enter Homes?
Nuisance animals like raccoons, squirrels, and more are searching for the same things that all living creatures need to survive: food, water, and shelter. Your attic space often provides an ideal shelter for these critters. During the harsh winter months, your attic space provides a warm sanctuary. During spring, when many of these critters begin nesting and having babies, your attic provides protection from predators. Additionally, your home could also be providing food sources to invading wildlife. Raccoons will dig through trash cans to eat your garbage, and they will also eat bowls of pet food that have been left outside overnight. Squirrels can pick up fallen tree nuts and eat from your bird feeders. If you have a population of mice or rats on your property, they are like an all-you-can-eat buffet for snakes. Birdbaths, leaky pipes, or improper drainage can all provide a source of water for critters who decide to settle down on your property.
Common Entry Points for Wildlife
- Roof and Attic Vents – wildlife can exploit gaps in rooflines, gable vents, or damaged shingles, gnawing or scratching at these areas until they are wide enough to fit through.
- Chimneys – if you don’t have a chimney cap installed, your chimney is left wide open for animals to enter through.
- Soffits and eaves: loose soffit panels or gaps under roof overhangs provide an easy way in for raccoons, squirrels, birds and bats.
- Gaps under siding or fascia: especially where two different materials meet.
- Foundation cracks and crawl space vents: these provide easy access for rats and mice, who will in turn attract snakes that can easily fit right through.
- Garage doors: critters can enter your garage by squeezing through small gaps under or around your garage door.
How To Inspect Your Home for Entry Points
When inspecting your home for entry points, you have to look for the common signs, like gnaw marks, droppings, nesting material, or greasy rub marks on the wall around the entry point. Both the interior and the exterior of the home should be inspected thoroughly, especially around common areas of wildlife activity like attics, basements, and crawl spaces.
If you aren’t sure about inspecting for entry points yourself, you can also call the experts at Summit Wildlife Removal. Our team of wildlife exclusion experts are highly trained to identify all current and potential entry points, so you can be sure that your home is safe from future infestations.
Professional Wildlife Exclusion Services
Summit Wildlife Removal offers the best professional wildlife exclusion service in the Northern Virginia area. Our experts will locate and seal off any entry point that’s currently being used or may potentially be used by wildlife to enter your home. For smaller gaps, we can utilize caulk and weatherstripping. Hardware cloth and metal flashing can do the job for wider openings. Chimney caps and vent guards can keep critters out of these fixtures while allowing them to function as normal, and one-way exclusion devices allow bats and squirrels to leave the attic, but not get back inside. For professional wildlife exclusion services in Northern Virginia, contact the experts at Summit Wildlife Removal today at 703-884-2124!
Preventative Measures to Keep Wildlife Away
In addition to professional wildlife removal and exclusion services, you can also take some preventative measures to keep wildlife away from your property in Northern Virginia:
- Secure trash cans with tight lids
- Don’t leave pet food out overnight
- Trim trees and shrubs away from your home
- Keep your lawn short and well maintained
- Have a regular pest control program done by a licensed professional like Summit Pest Control
