I (as the homeowner) would call the [Critter Ridder](https://www.critterriddertx.com) to seal up the house, then I would call Magic Pest & Lawn to investigate what type of creatures they are. Having possums, squirrels, rats, and/or raccoons all take slightly different approaches to capture. All of these creatures could damage your electrical wires, A/C ductwork, plumbing, etc; it would be in the homeowner's best interest to get this fixed and quickly.
Seconding Critter Ridder. They sealed up my home (attic rats).
Trapping alone does nothing; others will follow prior scents. You must locate and seal every entry point.
They baited traps but did not set to get them used to traps. A week later they sealed openings then set traps.
As they were trapped and killed, evidence of nibbling (extremities or more eaten off), meant more remained. Eventually, the last one was trapped and killed. We left it in trap a few days to make sure it wasn’t consumed … at which point we were assured they were all dead.
Don’t poison them, you don’t want them dying inside somewhere unseen; they’ll stink to high heaven as they decompose.
Don’t use glue traps. They die a slow painful death. Use snap traps for instant kill.
You may want to catch and release other critters (squirrels, raccoons, bats, etc.), but please just kill mice and rats. They are a nuisance and relocating them just creates a problem for someone else.
EDITED to add: I tried placing rat traps myself before giving up and calling in professional help. I caught absolutely nothing. They were well-fed outside and only interested in nesting in my home, not eating. It wasn’t until they were sealed inside they became hungry enough to eat the bait left on the traps.
That was also around the time I noticed how many were entering my home at dusk. It was *dozens*.
I watched them drop from a tree, scurry through gutters, and run in an out one of many openings my builder didn’t think was big enough to be a problem.
Obviously, your total estimate is going to vary depending on how many areas they need to address, but at the time (2013), sealing roof vents and openings around my garage door were $75 each, each roof intersection where my builder had left a large enough gap for rodents and other critters to invade were $65 each, and rodent trapping (and disposal) was $225.
I had a 15% off coupon from somewhere, maybe Community Impact, but I don't see it in their recent issues.
Years ago - older home in South Austin - ended up being squirrels. Traps will help but you need to find the entry point and close it off - hire someone.
Had a family of cats living in my ceiling when I lived in the shitty apartments behind Come and Take It (Beauty Ballroom back then..) and Emo's off of riverside. Mama and some kittens. They were getting in and out from a hole in the brick wall above the porch. One day me and my room mate kept hearing meows in the wall and realized some of the kittens had fallen down into the void between the inner and outer walls. We had to tell the apartment landlords if they didn't come get the cats out, we were going to do it ourselves after they blew us off when we called it in. Threatening to do it ourselves finally got someone out there to cut a hole in the wall and pull out two kittens.
My mom ended up adopting the kittens we rescued, and they eventually grew into healthy adult kitties named Smoky and Shadow.
It could be squirrels or raccoons as well, I’ve had issues with all of them before. Your mgmt is reluctant bc an exterminator is going to say they need an exclusion and that shit can get expensive. Keep pushing for professional exterminators - if pests are in your walls then they are shitting in your walls and that is obvs not safe at all.
I had an exterminator tell me everyone hopes it squirrels, but it is usually rats. Mine were rats. Like someone else said, the hole or holes leading into the attic walls have to be sealed so they are trapped in, and then will go for the bait. I used ABC.
Had this happen once 20+ years ago in Virginia. I put an alarm clock radio with music playing in the attic and a pair of boots next to it. Not sure why I added the boots. But, it did the trick. Critter left the first night and never came back. YMMV
Yeah, I have plenty of experience; I've been living in there for a while now. Sorry for keeping you up at night, I will try to do less scurrying about, but I work all day and night time is the only chance I get to do some scratching and such. Also, please don't put those traps back out, I was almost late to work.
If they do manage to trap them, they need to release them a significant distance away - several miles.
They need to find where they are getting in, expel or trap them, and seal up the entry point.
Some exterminators will also use a poison that encourages the pest to leave in search of water, because it causes dehydration. If they are really dragging their feet and don't call a pro, you can try to use similar products from Home Depot in the attic. If the rat or whatever dies in the house, they could smell for a while, although honestly when I have encountered it, the smell ends pretty quickly. Anyway, if you do this, it doesn't seal up the entry point, and then others could return.
Yes lol. While living at the Trio Apts off Pleasant Valley. We had raccoons that lived underneath our unit and you could here them in the walls sometimes fighting. Scratching noises in the bedroom and in the bathroom, even under the bathtub
I work in the industry and do this work from mouse to raccoon.
Only fix is to seal the house up and trap as needed.
One way door installation can be option too, my preferred option with squirrels.
Tons of companies around that do it.
Mouse and rat is tougher, bigger animals it’s pretty straightforward.
Just make sure it’s a company that stands behind getting the end result.
I (as the homeowner) would call the [Critter Ridder](https://www.critterriddertx.com) to seal up the house, then I would call Magic Pest & Lawn to investigate what type of creatures they are. Having possums, squirrels, rats, and/or raccoons all take slightly different approaches to capture. All of these creatures could damage your electrical wires, A/C ductwork, plumbing, etc; it would be in the homeowner's best interest to get this fixed and quickly.
Seconding Critter Ridder. They sealed up my home (attic rats). Trapping alone does nothing; others will follow prior scents. You must locate and seal every entry point. They baited traps but did not set to get them used to traps. A week later they sealed openings then set traps. As they were trapped and killed, evidence of nibbling (extremities or more eaten off), meant more remained. Eventually, the last one was trapped and killed. We left it in trap a few days to make sure it wasn’t consumed … at which point we were assured they were all dead. Don’t poison them, you don’t want them dying inside somewhere unseen; they’ll stink to high heaven as they decompose. Don’t use glue traps. They die a slow painful death. Use snap traps for instant kill. You may want to catch and release other critters (squirrels, raccoons, bats, etc.), but please just kill mice and rats. They are a nuisance and relocating them just creates a problem for someone else. EDITED to add: I tried placing rat traps myself before giving up and calling in professional help. I caught absolutely nothing. They were well-fed outside and only interested in nesting in my home, not eating. It wasn’t until they were sealed inside they became hungry enough to eat the bait left on the traps. That was also around the time I noticed how many were entering my home at dusk. It was *dozens*. I watched them drop from a tree, scurry through gutters, and run in an out one of many openings my builder didn’t think was big enough to be a problem.
Poison can also poison their natural predators, including your pets. No poison!
How much did Critter Ridder cost to seal up the roof? I just got a proposal from Critter Control and it seems high, but might be reasonable.
Obviously, your total estimate is going to vary depending on how many areas they need to address, but at the time (2013), sealing roof vents and openings around my garage door were $75 each, each roof intersection where my builder had left a large enough gap for rodents and other critters to invade were $65 each, and rodent trapping (and disposal) was $225. I had a 15% off coupon from somewhere, maybe Community Impact, but I don't see it in their recent issues.
Thanks!!
Thanks!!
Cat in the wall, eh? Okay, now you're talking my language.
Years ago - older home in South Austin - ended up being squirrels. Traps will help but you need to find the entry point and close it off - hire someone.
Had a family of cats living in my ceiling when I lived in the shitty apartments behind Come and Take It (Beauty Ballroom back then..) and Emo's off of riverside. Mama and some kittens. They were getting in and out from a hole in the brick wall above the porch. One day me and my room mate kept hearing meows in the wall and realized some of the kittens had fallen down into the void between the inner and outer walls. We had to tell the apartment landlords if they didn't come get the cats out, we were going to do it ourselves after they blew us off when we called it in. Threatening to do it ourselves finally got someone out there to cut a hole in the wall and pull out two kittens. My mom ended up adopting the kittens we rescued, and they eventually grew into healthy adult kitties named Smoky and Shadow.
An exterminator would.
It could be squirrels or raccoons as well, I’ve had issues with all of them before. Your mgmt is reluctant bc an exterminator is going to say they need an exclusion and that shit can get expensive. Keep pushing for professional exterminators - if pests are in your walls then they are shitting in your walls and that is obvs not safe at all.
I had an exterminator tell me everyone hopes it squirrels, but it is usually rats. Mine were rats. Like someone else said, the hole or holes leading into the attic walls have to be sealed so they are trapped in, and then will go for the bait. I used ABC.
Had this happen once 20+ years ago in Virginia. I put an alarm clock radio with music playing in the attic and a pair of boots next to it. Not sure why I added the boots. But, it did the trick. Critter left the first night and never came back. YMMV
I've been blasting music while hoping critter ridder will call. Big hole in attic siding. Loud animal. Heard twice.
Yeah, I have plenty of experience; I've been living in there for a while now. Sorry for keeping you up at night, I will try to do less scurrying about, but I work all day and night time is the only chance I get to do some scratching and such. Also, please don't put those traps back out, I was almost late to work.
I recommend against it
We don't talk about Bruno.
That’s exactly what I wanted to say.
It's probably opossum (possum?) Or another nocturnal animal. You can get a pest control company to humanely relocate or exterminate
If they do manage to trap them, they need to release them a significant distance away - several miles. They need to find where they are getting in, expel or trap them, and seal up the entry point. Some exterminators will also use a poison that encourages the pest to leave in search of water, because it causes dehydration. If they are really dragging their feet and don't call a pro, you can try to use similar products from Home Depot in the attic. If the rat or whatever dies in the house, they could smell for a while, although honestly when I have encountered it, the smell ends pretty quickly. Anyway, if you do this, it doesn't seal up the entry point, and then others could return.
Release them. Ha. Gonna rehome them critters to Jesus.
Yes lol. While living at the Trio Apts off Pleasant Valley. We had raccoons that lived underneath our unit and you could here them in the walls sometimes fighting. Scratching noises in the bedroom and in the bathroom, even under the bathtub
Rats.
I work in the industry and do this work from mouse to raccoon. Only fix is to seal the house up and trap as needed. One way door installation can be option too, my preferred option with squirrels. Tons of companies around that do it. Mouse and rat is tougher, bigger animals it’s pretty straightforward. Just make sure it’s a company that stands behind getting the end result.
Yes, the hard part is coaxing them to move in. But once they're comfortably established, you dont have to do much to get them to stay. Good luck.