The Damage Tree Squirrels Can Do To Your Home

While tree squirrels look small and cute, they can pack a big punch when it comes to the damage they can inflict on a home. This damage can be both extensive and costly. Not only can damage by squirrels be extensive, it can also be extremely costly.

Tree squirrels get their name from their habitat: trees. There are three types of tree squirrels including pine squirrels, gray squirrels, and fox squirrels. Pine Squirrels are active year round, most often in the morning and evening, although they are sometimes active after dark as well. Pine squirrels feed on a variety of nuts, seeds, berries, bird eggs and fungi. Gray squirrels are active year round just like pine squirrels, but they tend to be more lively in the morning and evening on dry days. Gray squirrels also feed mostly on nuts, particularly acorns, hickory nuts, beechnuts and walnuts. Occasionally they feed on maple or tulip tree seeds, fruit, opening buds and corn. Fox squirrels are most active in the morning and late afternoon and they often bury nuts for winter use. Like tree and pine squirrels, they feed primarily on hickory nuts and acorns. Fox squirrels also eat the fruit of tulip poplar, maple tree seeds, berries, bird eggs, and fungi similar to tree squirrels.

How Threat Do These Squirrels Pose?

All three species of tree squirrels are considered household pests. These squirrels frequently enter attics in the winter and if they do not have their acorns or trees to trim their teeth on, they may start gnawing on the wood inside your home. Since squirrels can chew through just about anything, they pose a threat outdoors as well. They can cause considerable damage to electrical, cable, and telephone cables. This can really start to add up financially.

Have tree squirrel problems you need assistance with? Contact Attic Solutions

How To Identify The Pest, Nest, And Threat

A perfect day can be ruined by one sting from an insect! While stinging insects are not generally life threatening or even extraordinarily dangerous (unless you have an allergy), dealing with a sting is certainly not much fun. In order to keep yourself and your family sting free, follow this guide to identify the pest, the nest, and the threat.

The Pest And Threat

Some stinging insects are more dangerous than others. A professional will be able to determine what stinging insect is what, but this guide will attempt to help as well.

Bumble bees: fuzzy, about ¼ to 1 inch in size and have black and yellow markings. Their nests are built out of pollen clumps on the ground or sometimes in abandoned mouse nests. These insects are generally considered helpful since they pollinate plants and flowers.
Carpenter bees: look similar to bumble bees, but have largely bare and shiny abdomens. These bees do not build nests, but bore into wood, especially decaying or weathered wood. Though they do not have a stinger, male carpenter bees can be territorial and aggressive. Females rarely sting, but these insects can do considerable structural damage.
Honey bees: orangish brown and about ½ to 5/8 inch in size. They live in mass colonies since they are social. These bees are defensive, not aggressive, and only attack if they feel there is a threat.
Yellowjacket: between 3/8 and 5/8 inches with a yellow and black pattern. Their nests can grow to be the size of basketballs and are constructed from paper carton and have a honeycomb shape. Nests could be in garages or corners of porches or on the ground or bushes as well. While they are generally slow to sting, they will if they feel threatened.
Paper wasp: brownish with yellow or red markings. Their nests look similar to paper and generally hang from something like tree branches, door frames and porch ceilings. Paper wasps are very likely to sting if their nest is touched.

The Nest

One way to keep your family safe is to do regular walk-throughs around your property looking for nests. Look carefully under overhangs, leaves, and the undersides of porches and decks. You also want to check shrubs, bushes, trees, and any other structures like sheds. If you come across a nest, you should not try to remove it on your own. The colony might become agitated and aggressive and attack en masse, which is when a sting goes from being a nuisance to becoming extremely dangerous. A professional will be able to safely remove and/or relocate the nest.

Attic Solutions is fully licensed and insured and prepared to remove the bees from your property, regardless of scope of infestation.

Don’t wait to get stung; call Attic Solutions today. We will help!

Signs Of Groundhog Damage In Your Yard

Usually when we think about groundhogs, we are reminded of Punxsutawney Phil, the groundhog who lets us know how soon spring will come, or the awesome Billy Murray movie “Groundhog Day.” Well, groundhogs (also known as woodchucks) are not just for movies and forecasting weather. They live among us, and might even be responsible for damaging your yard. To find out if you have your very own Punxsutawney Phil living in your backyard look for the following signs.

A vegetable in your garden has a large bite taken out of it.
The green leafy parts of your carrots have been eaten.
You have a large 10 to 12 inch hole in your backyard (many times next to a tree or fence) with a mound of dirt surrounding it. This hole could also be under your deck or shed. Ground hog tunnels typically have two entrances, can be up to 5 feet deep, and are up to 60 feet long.
Your fruit tree has been gnawed on.
You see a ground hog. They are not all that shy and sleep during the night so if one moved into your yard it wouldn’t be surprising if you caught him sunning himself.
Groundhogs use distinct sounds to communicate. Listen for whistling, squeals, barks, and clicks.

If you want to evict your groundhog, the best bet is to remove whatever is attracting him, but that is not so easy if you do not want to destroy your garden. The next best thing is to fence in your plants. For ground hogs, you need a fence at least 3 feet high, buried 2 inches into the ground. You can also close off entrances to the ground hog’s tunnels when they are empty.

Evanston Asks Residents To Help With Rat Abatement

A recent Chicago Tribune headline took some people by surprise: “City enlists residents in fight against rats.” The city was Evanston, Illinois, and officials from the city’s health and human services department are asking the public to help them in the city’s rat abatement program. Evanston’s director of health and human services, Evonda Thomas-Smith, addressed the city council in May regarding the department’s new strategy. She explained that resident involvement is important for the rat-control program to be successful. Residents are asked to call 311 to report rats and get liability waivers so inspectors can go on their property and arrange for abatement methods. Residents can also help by keeping garbage and food in tightly sealed containers, maintaining grass, shrubs, weeds and other vegetation, and close any openings in garage doors and walls. Additionally, people can be mindful of what inspectors call the “35 cents rule.” The 35 cents rule refers to holes in the ground: a hole the size of a quarter can fit a rat and a hole the size of a dime can fit a mouse.

Inspectors have all also been out walking the city in full force. They’re searching for any rat infestations and colonies as well as identifying areas that may be appealing to rats. Some of those areas are on residential property and often involved a property-code violation of city ordinance. One property owner had a pile of wood along with a tire and other debris stacked against his back porch. The tire was additionally troublesome because according to the inspectors it can collect water, creating a breeding a ground for mosquitoes, which is a concern due to West Nile Virus. Not every property was that severe though. One of the more common things inspectors noticed was overgrown grass and shrubs, which provides cover for rats. According to inspectors, the cover allows rats to run wild.

The city of Evanston understands it will take everyone, residents and all of the departments in the city, working together for the rat abatement program to be successful.

Common Skunk Myths

Now that we’re well into summer, you’ve probably smelled that familiar musky odor that can only be a skunk more than a few times. While skunks are a commonly known critter, there are still many myths about them. Since this is the time of year for increased skunk activity, it’s a perfect opportunity to dispel some myths about our smelly friends.

Common Skunk Myths

Tomato juice will remove the smell of skunk spray.

We’ve all heard this one. In fact, you probably know someone who has bathed themselves or their pet in tomato after an unintended encounter with a skunk. Unfortunately, bathing in tomato juice will only make you smell like, well, tomato juice. And once the tomato juice smell goes away, you’ll be back to smelling like a skunk. See, a skunk smell is so strong your nose actually gets used to it by binding your smell receptors. This phenomenon is called olfactory fatigue.

Skunks will spray you if you get too close.

Skunks only spray when they feel threatened or are frightened. It is their natural defense against predators and that’s what they use it for. If you find yourself close to a skunk avoid making rapid or quick movements or shouting. Dogs usually only get sprayed when they start jumping toward the skunk and/or bark. Simply walk away slowly and you should be just fine.

Since skunks are nocturnal, they only come out at night.

Skunks are indeed nocturnal, but that does not mean they only come out at night. Some come out during the day to search for food if a predator has been preventing them from venturing out at night or a mother has been tending to her young.

Fox urine is a skunk repellant.

Sorry to disappoint, but fox urine will not repel a skunk. The conventional wisdom was, if you spread fox urine the skunk would smell it and be frightened away since the fox is a natural predator. If skunks always ran away from fox urine, they wouldn’t have too many places to go in the wild.

As soon as you suspect you may have a skunk infestation, call us immediately at 847-464-1861 for removal. We are trained professionals and equipped to deal with wild animals.

Deterrents for Chipmunks and Ground Squirrels

Chipmunk in a tree

Chipmunks and ground squirrels (which look very similar and are often confused with being the same animal) might look adorable (especially when they’re portrayed in a cute animated movie) but make no mistake, they can wreak havoc on your yard and garden. If you’re looking for ways to deter them from making your property their home, read on.

Thanks to urban sprawl, chipmunks have adapted suburbia even though they prefer timber borders. Chipmunks are known to dig elaborate tunnels under flower beds, shrubs, trees, wood or rock piles and even porches and sidewalks. Ground squirrels favor open grasslands: think cemeteries, golf courses, and well-manicured lawns and create tunnels as well. And these tunnels are no joke. Some are as long as 20 to 30 feet with multiple points of entry, which makes it difficult to serve a permanent eviction notice.

Since it is much more difficult to get rid of chipmunks and ground squirrels once they move in, your best bet is prevent them from even considering it.

• This should be obvious, but do NOT feed them! If you feed them, they won’t want to ever leave.
• Clean up any spills from bird feeders quickly. Bird seed piled up on the ground is like a top-notch buffet to a ground squirrel or chipmunk.
• Put welded wire around deck openings and elevated sheds to prevent the critters from gaining entry.
• Install chimney caps. Yes, they can and will move into your chimney.
• These creatures are easily scared, so objects like inflatable beach balls, or plastic bags on sticks that will blow in the wind will frighten them away (until they get used to them).
• If you find a den, put lighting in it. Christmas lights, flood lamps, and bright flashlights work well. The best bet is to leave them on 24/7, but if you can’t, leave them on at night so their sleep is interrupted and unpleasant.
• Noise! Put an alarm clock, radio, or even a noisy toy in or next to their den. Again, 24/7 is best, but if that’s not possible then play it at night.
• If they make a den in your chimney, do NOT smoke them out. Place a radio in there and leave it on or lower a light down in it instead.

Ground Squirrel

The best way to check if you have thoroughly evicted the pesky critters is to place loosely balled up newspaper at any of the entrances. Check it periodically over the course of several days and if you see it hasn’t been disturbed then you have successfully booted them out! The loose newspaper is important because if there are young ones inside the den, you do not want them trapped.

White Nose Syndrome Cure For Bats?

Over the last decade, white-nose syndrome has killed more than 5.7 million bats across the United States and Canada. The disease was originally discovered in New York in 2006 and has spread at a rapid pace across the country since then. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources recently issued a statement cautioning Illinois residents that entire bat populations were dying throughout the Eastern United States while they hibernated in their caves and mines.

White-nose syndrome is named for a white fungus or mold (Pseudogymnoascus destructans [SU-doh-JIM-no-ASK-us DIH-STRUK-tans], also known as Pd) that grows on the nose and wings of infected bats. The fungus eats holes in the wings of bats, which causes them to become too weak to hunt. The bats eventually lose their fat reserves, which they need to survive during the winter and then starve to death. Interestingly, this same fungus does not kill bats in Europe because it seems to have evolved.

So far, while researchers and scientists have explored many white-noise treatments, none of the tested bats have been returned to the wild. That is, until May 19, 2015. On that night, a group of scientists released 150 bats that had been treated for white-nose syndrome back into the wild near Hannibal, Missouri. As recently as last fall, those same bats were suffering from the fungus. While the results are encouraging, since this was the first group of bats returned to the wild after being treated for white-nose syndrome we still have yet to see what happens. Craig Willis, a biologist at the University of Winnipeg in Canada who studies bats, but was not involved in this project says “there’s still a lot we need to know [about bats and the treatment] before we can get close to calling this or anything else a ‘cure.’”

Reducing The Risk Of Mice And Rats In Your Home

House mice, which are generally active at night, are gray in color and small: usually between two to four inches long. Their nests are typically 12 to 15 inches across and made out of fibrous materials such as paper, and are loosely knit together. Some signs you have house mice include partially nibbled food and small droppings.

Rats are larger in size than house mice (they are 12 to 16 inches from nose to tail) and are a grayish brown color with a long hairless tail. The most common sign you have rats is droppings near food sources along with evidence of gnawing, burrows, tracks, nests and rub marks. It is important to control and eliminate any mice or rats in your home because they contaminate the environments in which they live through their urine, droppings and hairs. They also can carry a wide range of diseases, which can be passed on to humans, either by directly contaminating food with their droppings and urine, or by contaminating surfaces. Rats specifically can pass on the potentially fatal Weils Disease, which is carried by about 15 to 30 per cent of the rat population.

In addition to the potential threat of contamination and the threat of disease, they can also cause extensive structural damage to property. Mice and rats have strong teeth and are capable of gnawing a variety of materials. According to experts, there is a significant risk of fire and electrocution as a result of mice and rodents chewing through electric cables and wiring.

You can discourage mice from taking up residence and prevent infestations by blocking access points to your home and improving hygiene:

Check that doors fit tightly
Check that windows close tightly
Seal all cracks, openings, and holes
Inspect for access points around gas, electricity, and water pipes
Store food carefully with tight-fitting lids
Clean up any spills immediately
Remove garbage and other materials that can be used by mice

Rats can be both more difficult and more dangerous to deal with. Before you attempt to deal with a rat problem yourself, it is critical to identify where rats are living, feeding, and drinking, and the routes they take between these areas. Look out for:

Droppings
Footprints
Holes and burrows
Runs and tracks
Other signs such as sightings or a musky smell

You need to find out how the rats are getting into your home. Try blocking any holes you find with newspaper or similar material or similar material and returning 24 hours to see if it was disturbed. The trained professionals at Attic Solutions can assist you in eliminating any rat or mice problems you may be experiencing.

Protecting Your Yard From Skunks

Skunks may not look very threatening, and they are not, but they can be a nuisance for your yard. In fact, they are capable of doing quite a bit of damage to property if you do not properly protect your yard. Follow these techniques to protect your yard against skunks.

Did A Skunk Move In?

First, be sure a skunk moved in. You will most likely smell its strong, musky odor before you see it! Another clue is 3-4 inch holes in your yard and around the exterior of your home.

Prevent Denning

If you see any holes around your yard, fill them loosely with leaves, straw, soil, crumpled up paper, and other similar materials. Filling it loosely with these types of things allows for an animal who may be in there to safely escape. After a few nights, if you see the material is undisturbed, you can permanently fill in the hole.

Make Your Yard Unattractive To Skunks

Now that the warm summer months are here, it is not unheard of to feed our pets outside. The only problem is skunks (and other creatures) love pet food as much as our pets. If you have to feed your pet outdoors, it is best to remove the food and dishes as soon as your pet is finished. Additionally, skunks are attracted to garbage. Try to limit the time your garbage is out and if you leave it in a place like a garage, keep that area secure so skunks can not get in. Another way to make your yard unattractive to skunks is to avoid over watering your lawn. Skunks dig for grubs and when the soil is drier, the grubs are further down and more difficult for skunks to reach. If finding food in your yard is challenging, a skunk will move on somewhere else.
If you suspect you have a skunk infestation, call Attic Solutions immediately at 847-464-1861 for removal. We are trained professionals and equipped to deal with wild animals.

How To Identify Chipmunk Damage

Chipmunks might be cute, (the cutest in the rodent family depending on who you ask) but they can also be naughty little critters! While most of the damage they do is merely bothersome, these little creatures can be quite destructive, especially when burrowing near a home’s foundation. Chipmunks, like most rodents, reproduce rapidly and a large chipmunk population that is burrowing along, under, or near a patio, sidewalk, retaining wall, or other structure can cause it to collapse. More often than not though, chipmunks dig up gardens, feed on flower bulbs and fruit seeds, and gnaw on bark.

It is easy to mistake chipmunk damage for other small animals like squirrels. Look closely at the tracks; chipmunk tracks show four toes on the feet and five toes on the rear (front and hind feet are generally reversed). You can also identify chipmunks by their excrement. Chipmunk scat is about 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch in size and is a round pellet shape. You will usually find it in very small piles of four to six pieces.

If you think you may have a chipmunk problem, these are some signs of chipmunk damage:

Seed piles under bird feeders
Uprooted bulbs
Holes in your garden or yard from digging
Chipmunk tracks
Chipmunk scat
Structural or foundational damage from chipmunk burrows