Keeping wildlife out of your home seems like a no-brainer. Close the doors, use screens on your windows and don’t leave gaping holes anywhere that they can access to move in. But it’s not so easy. Sometimes there’s a soft spot in the wood, or crack you weren’t aware of the way up high. Many…
We know what you’re thinking: Why on earth are we talking about keeping bats around when it’s our job to get rid of them. But hear us out. Bats, while unwelcome in your home and dangerous for handling, are actually great little creatures to have around. Seriously. Just not inside your home or where they…
What’s cute, furry, has huge eyes and possibly lives in your attic? While there are a lot of possibilities, it’s not unusual for your attic-dwellers to be flying squirrels at this time of year. In Connecticut, we have two types: the northern flying squirrel, which lives (unsurprisingly) in the northern part of the state at…
With the cold weather coming on, animals are beginning to look for places to den for the winter. Your home – particularly your attic – is ideal for this purpose. Unless your attic is completely impenetrable (and no attic is), you may find yourself with unwanted residents from time to time. To prevent costly damage…
Just in time for Halloween, there’s something in your attic making noises. Seasonal fears aside, it’s probably not ghosts and goblins. It’s more likely to be birds or rodents which (in their own way) are just as scary to a homeowner. Probably scarier. After all, what self-respecting goblin chews through your electrical wires? It’s That…
Q: What’s gray or brown, five to eight inches long, and making holes in your yard? A: If it’s back end and front end are hard to tell apart, you may have moles. (Moles are a bit weird-looking.) Even if you haven’t seen them (they’re shy and spend most of their time underground), it’s possible…
They’re cute, they’re striped, and they find your trash delicious. As Connecticut residents know, raccoons in the garbage can are almost as inevitable as leaves changing colors in the fall. Sometimes, however, the raccoons don’t only “dine in” at your home…they live in, too. So how do you put out the “no welcome” mat for…
It starts with a weird noise: a squeak, a shuffle or a scratching. It may continue with a smell of either droppings, urine or decomposing animal. You may even come face-to-face with it. Whether it has fur or feathers (in Connecticut, we have a lot of both) it’s a nuisance, and it’s living in your…
What’s the difference between flying squirrels and bats? While they’re very different from a biology standpoint, to a homeowner, they can sound much the same. They both live quite high up, can fly (or glide from tree branches, in the case of flying squirrels) and tend to choose roofs and attics for nesting since neither…
Birds, like all of us, look to make their homes in warm comfortable places, particularly when raising their young. Unfortunately, one of the spots that seems most suitable to them is our dryer vents: they’re warm, they’re dry, they protect from predators and they even provide bits of fluff for nesting materials. Unfortunately, they’re narrow,…