Are you dealing with nuisance squirrels and want to know how to get rid of squirrels from your home or business? We will go through everything you need to know about dealing with a squirrel problem on your own from legal considerations here in North Carolina to trap selection.
Legal Considerations
Prior to dealing with your squirrel problem on your own it is important to understand the legal requirements or limitations. Below are some of the legal considerations for North Carolina. If you are from another state please ensure your research the legal considerations for your state.
- Trapping Legally – Here in North Carolina you cannot legally trap squirrels without a depredation permit. Other nuisance species, such as raccoons, can be trapped legally during the posted trapping season with proper licensing. A depredation permit will allow you to “take” squirrels using legal means, such as trapping, only if the squirrels are causing damage. A depredation permit can be obtained by contacting the NC Wildlife Resources Commission.
- Firearms – There is a law here in North Carolina allowing property owners to protect their property from damage from wildlife. This law allows property owners to use firearms to “take” an animal if it is in the act of doing damage. An example might be you catch a raccoon killing you chickens or you see the squirrel gnawing on the side of your home or business. While the state does authorize the use of firearms it is important to check with your city ordinances to ensure you are allowed to use a firearm in your area. This includes air rifles as well.
- Relocation – It is legal to relocate squirrels in North Carolina but there are laws which need to be followed when relocating animals. The largest concern is where you are going to relocate the animal to. It is illegal in North Carolina to relocate any wildlife species onto state owned property. Animals that are to be relocated need to be relocated to private property which you have permission to release the animals on. If you cannot obtain permission to release the animals on someones property then the animals cannot be relocated legally.
Where To Start – The Inspection
After considering all the legal requirements and restrictions listed above what is next? The next step to get rid of squirrels is to inspect your home or business.
- Entry Points – If you know squirrels are getting in your home or business it is important to identify how they are getting in. A grey squirrel requires a hole approximately the size of a baseball while flying squirrels require a hole the size of golf ball and sometimes smaller. Sometimes the entry areas will have gnawing around it making it easy to identify while other times you may have to really search. It is important to not seal any entry point until you are positive there are no more squirrels, or babies, in your home.
- Droppings – Squirrels will typically have a latrine area where majority of their droppings can be found. Grey Squirrel droppings are significantly larger then flying squirrel droppings.
- Damage to wires – It is very important to inspect for damaged wires if squirrels are in your home or business. Squirrels will gnaw on electrical wires removing the plastic coating and leaving exposed bare wire. If you find gnawing on any wires you should have it looked at by an electrician as soon as possible as it can be a fire hazard.
Trap Selection To Get Rid Of Squirrels
- Box Traps / Live Traps – Box traps are used if you want to relocate the squirrels. If you are planning on relocating squirrels ensure you find property to release them on before you begin. Some box traps can be found in your local home improvement store such as Lowe’s or Home Depot. There are both one and two door traps. Two door traps allow the animals to see completely through the trap while animals may be more hesitant to go into a single door trap. There is also gravity doors and spring assisted doors.
- Kill Traps – Kill traps include traps such as the conibear 110 and the common rat trap. When using a kill trap be cautious as to not catch yourself. There has been many fingernails lost to these traps. It is also important to chose the right trap location to ensure your you do not catch anything besides the targeted animals. Rat traps can be found at walmart. Conibear traps may be more difficult to find locally. I have found them at Cabelas and AgriSupply.
Set Trap For Success
- Trap Location – Trap location and the type of trap is extremely important. The trap should be placed in the animals travel way. A few examples are directly in front of the entry points and in the paths created by the squirrels in your attic. If you chose to use a kill trap you will want to ensure it is placed where only the targeted animals will trip it. If you have squirrels in the attic you will want to place the kill traps in the attic.
- Use The Right Bait – There are several different baits that can be used for squirrels. A few include peanut butter, peanuts, and corn. There is even some commercially available squirrel bait. When setting traps for squirrels my preferred bait is Nutella and it does not have to be the name brand stuff. If you are using a box trap place the bait all the way to the rear of the trap for a single door trap and in the middle for a two door trap.
- Use The Right Amount Of Traps – Before you start trapping it is important to estimate how many squirrels you are dealing with. If possible I recommend you put a trap out for every squirrel you want to catch. Squirrels will become educated to the trap as they see you taking squirrels out with them and may become weary of the trap. If you put a trap out for every squirrel you could possibly trap them all the first day. If you place 1 trap and there are 5 squirrels it will likely be a minimum of 5 days at best.
Hire A Professional To Get Rid Of Squirrels For you
If you do not want to deal with the legal restrictions or just want to ensure your squirrel problem is dealt with properly then hire a professional. Ensure anyone you hire is licensed and insured.
- It may cost you more if you attempt to get rid of squirrels on your own and then call if you can’t.
- Wildlife Control Specialists are trained and experienced to ensure your problem is handled properly.
- Have an arsenal of traps to properly target your problem animals.
- Wildlife Damage Control Agents are able to write their own depredation permits.
- Professionals have access to property to relocate animals.
We Can Get Rid Of Your Squirrels
Call today if you are in our service area and are in need of our squirrel removal service or are dealing with problems caused by another nuisance wildlife species and you want them solved. You can contact us though our contact page or by calling (919) 584-8650.
