Bats in your attic? Mouse in your house? As human development spreads farther out into wilderness areas, critters of all shapes and sizes find their way into homes and can cause serious problems.
While the state Department of Natural Resources will remove certain animals, there are also several nuisance-animal removal services that work throughout Greenville County to catch anything from rodents and snakes to wild hogs. A Plus Wildlife Control, All About Wildlife Control and All Things Wild are just a few, and experts from each agree people often don’t realize how vulnerable their homes are to animal invasion.
“On a typical day, we’re crawling under houses, crawling through attics and on top of the house,” said wildlife biologist Roddy Cooper of All About Wildlife Control.
Each call for Cooper begins with an inspection to find signs of the animal and possible entry points.
Jeremiah Gilbert of All Things Wild agreed that the sources of most animal invasions are small openings in the structure of the home.
“When people are building homes, they are not thinking about animals,” he said.
Surprisingly, these businesses get most of their calls from urban and suburban areas, some of which occupy formerly wild environments.
“As people build in wooded areas, there is more animal-human interface,” said Cooper.
Wildlife technicians with these companies deal with a wide variety of animals, but in the summer months, most of their calls are for bats and snakes. Almost always nesting in attics, bats can carry rabies and parasites, and their droppings can cause damage to the home if allowed to accumulate. As protected animals, bats must be handled with a process that Cooper calls “passive eviction,” in which all the entry points are sealed and a device is put on a designated exit so that the bats can fly out at night but can’t get back in.
Burrowing animals like groundhogs and armadillos are also a problem in this area, according to these business owners.
“I’ve only seen armadillos [begin to appear] in the last five or six years,” said Keith Murphy, owner of A Plus Wildlife Control, adding that the animals have been gradually moving up from Georgia. These animals can make burrows in yards, caving in small buildings and compromising the foundations of homes by tunneling. They are commonly removed by trapping.
“A lot of people don’t realize the complexities of issues that animals can cause,” said Cooper.
Gilbert agreed that indoor rodents like mice and squirrels can damage duct work and nest in insulation, and outside beavers can cause flooding in ponds that can spill into homes and cause expensive damages.
“As soon as you notice signs of animals, start dealing with the problem,” he said.
Gilbert and other experts suggested taking preventative measures like sealing possible entry points to prevent infestation.
“We live with wildlife even though we try to isolate from it,” he said.
Some things you may not know about nuisance wildlife
- While rabies is a concern with bats, they also carry parasites called bat bugs, which are cousins to bed bugs and can similarly infest your home if you have a bat problem.
- The smallest of openings in your home can become entry points for animals. Insects like bees can enter through a quarter-inch opening and create hives, while other animals can get in through a half-inch opening.
- While raccoons are vectors for rabies, they can also carry a disease called distemper which causes lethargy, seizures and aggressive behavior if the animal is cornered. This disease does not impact humans, but it can infect unvaccinated dogs.
- State regulations do not permit the relocation of some nuisance animals. Businesses who do nuisance-wildlife removal are advised to euthanize fur-bearing animals like beavers, groundhogs, raccoons and squirrels as well as wild pigs and armadillos.
For more information about dealing with nuisance wildlife visit https://www.dnr.sc.gov/wildlife/nuisance.html
To find out more about the businesses above and their services visit:
http://www.allaboutwildlifecontrol.com/humane-animal-control/
https://apluswildlifecontrol-llc.com/
https://greenville.allthingswild.com/about-all-things-wild/
