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The squirrel population in the North West U.K. has boomed over the last 20 years to the degee that they have now become a major pest dealt with by Squirrels in Attic Pest Control
The grey squirrels which we see in our parks and gardens (Sciurus carolinensis) are not native to the U.K., having been brought here here less than two-hundred years America and Canada
Like many members of the Sciuridae family, the Grey Squirrel is a hoarder; it hoards food in numerous small caches for later recovery. Some hoards are temporary, especially those made near the site of a sudden surplus of food.
Other stores are more permanent and are not used until many weeks later. It has been seen that each squirrel makes several thousand of these caches each season. The squirrels have very good spatial memory for the locations of these caches, and use far and near landmarks to retrieve them. Smell is used once the squirrel is within a few centimetres of the target.
The nest of the squirrel is called a dray (or drey) and it is standard for the female to have two litters per year, each of two to four young..
They can be minor problems, uprooting bulbs and stealing food intended for birds but can be major pests when they come into our homes.
It is increasingly common for Trafford Pest Control to call out to homes where a dray has been made in a loft or attic space.
Squirrels are rodents and as such have teeth which never stop growing; the actual word rodent coming from the Latin word rodere which means to gnaw and this they do very successfully.
It is rare to visit a roof space where a dray has been built and find that they have not chewed cables, indeed it is estimated that up to 40 percent of fires without an obviously attributable cause may be started by rodents damaging wiring.
Unfortunately they can also chew through water-pipes, especially with the recent movement towards plastic push-fit piping.
As if that is not enough, many household insurance policies exclude damage done by rodents so if a squirrel floods your property by going through a pipe in the loft you may find yourself without insurance cover.
Removing Squirrels in Loft requires professional help, not least in as much as the law regarding squirrels restricts your options. You cannot simply buy a packet of poison from your local store and deal with them that way as you would be committing a criminal offence.
Furthermore you cannot catch them and move them some distance away, quite apart from the fact that removing a squirrel from the area of its food hoards probably cause it do die of starvation, it is also commintting an 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 the vast majority of cases trapping is the the only option and this must be done in a specific manner with routine, regular inspections of the traps.
Trapped squirrels should be then despatched humanely.
If you have a squirrel infestation in Lancashire, Cheshire or Manchester contact us on 01257 230637
Thanks again for the post.Really thank you! Will read on…