Squirrels in the Attic in Trafford, Manchester and Cheshire.
The squirrel population in North West England has rocketed over the last twenty years to the extent that they have grown to be a major household pest dealt with by Squirrels in Attic Pest Control
The grey squirrels which we see in our gardens and parks (Sciurus carolinensis) are not native to Britain, having been brought here here less than two-hundred years ago.
Like other members of the family Sciuridae, the Grey Squirrel is a scatter-hoarder; it staches food away in lots of small caches for subsequent recovery. Some caches are temporary, particularly those made near the source of a sudden glut of food.
Other hoards are more permanent and are not retrieved until months later. It has been observed that each squirrel makes several thousand caches each year. They 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 short distance of the target.
The nest of the grey squirrel is called a dray (or drey) and it is normal for the female to have two litters per year, with two to four babies each.
They can be minor problems, uprooting bulbs and eating food intended for birds but can become major pests when they come into our properties.
It is increasingly common for Trafford Pest Control to be called out to properties where a nest has been built in a loft or attic space.
Squirrels are rodents and as such have teeth which never stop growing; the very word rodent coming from the Latin word rodere which means to gnaw and this they do very successfully.
It is rare to enter a roof void where a dray has been built and find that they have not chewed electric cables, indeed it is estimated that forty percent of fires without an obvious cause may be started by rodents damaging wiring.
Unfortunately they can also chew through water-pipes, especially with the modern trend towards plastic push-fit piping.
As if that was not enough, most household insurance policies exclude damage by vermin so if a squirrel floods your property by eating through a water pipe in the roof void you may find yourself without insurance cover.
Eradicating Squirrels in Loft requires professional help, often because the law regarding squirrels is ever changing. You cannot simply obtain a packet of rat poison from your local hardware and deal with them that way as you would be committing a criminal offence.
Furthermore you cannot trap them and relocate them some distance away, not only would removing a squirrel from the area of its food caches probably cause it do die of starvation, it is also a criminal offence under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 under which it is illegal to release a grey squirrel in Britain.
That pertains also to rescuing and/or releasing injured squirrels.
In the vast majority of cases trapping is the most realistic option and this must be done in a specified manner with routine, timed inspections of the traps.
Trapped squirrels should be then despatched humanely.
If you have a squirrel problem in Lancashire, Cheshire or Manchester telephone us on 0800 019 8382
