Getting wild animals out of the chimney

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The animals that you are likely to encounter in your chimney are raccoons, squirrels, bats and birds. These are animals that are often spotted up high, usually in trees, but your roof is almost as good as a tree. Plus, the attic inside is better than any tree hollow.



During the spring months, these animals will have babies, and it is during this season that you will more than likely recognize that you have a wildlife control problem. You may hear a chirping sound, which will instantly make you think of birds, but also could be a sign that a mother raccoon has had her young. If you hear them coming from inside your fireplace, there's a good chance the mother has built her nest in the chimney. If you don't have a cover on your chimney, the chances of this happening to you are quite high, especially if you live in an area that is known to be rife with natural wildlife.

It's great to be so close to nature. It’s not so great when they move into your home.

Capping your chimney is the best thing you can do to prevent animals from falling into your chimney, and you should seriously consider doing this. Its remarkable easy for animals to get in there, and it’s stupidly difficult to get them back out again. Nine times out of ten, unless the animal can be released into the home and then capture or shoo’d out the back door, a wildlife control professional will be required, with a long snare pole and a few traps.

Stainless steel caps are the best chimney caps. Even rats will have a hard time chewing through the strong metal, and if the cap is affixed correctly, there is virtually no chance of it moving.

Please do not consider using hardware cloth to cover the top of your chimney. This will collect debris, such as leaves, as well as snow and other stuff, and when it does, your chimney will be blocked. There's a good chance you won't know about this for some time, and could prove dangerous. The gases that are meant to escape out the chimney are forced back into your home.

If you already have wild animals stuck in your chimney, capping it won't help. Well, it won’t until after the animal has been removed, the nest taken out, and any stuff left down there is cleared up.

Wild animals in the chimney are very difficult to get rid of, especially if you don't have the right tools or knowledge to do the job properly. There are a number of things that could go wrong, including harming you, your family members, and even the animal you're trying to humanely deal with.

For more information, you may want to click on one of these guides that I wrote:
How To Guide: Who should I hire? - What questions to ask, to look for, who NOT to hire.
How To Guide: do it yourself! - Advice on saving money by doing wildlife removal yourself.
Guide: How much does wildlife removal cost? - Analysis of wildlife control prices.
animals in the attic
noises in the attic