What is in my attic?

When you hear noises in the attic, it is usually a wild animal that has turned your attic into its temporary nesting site or den. There are clues that can help you figure out the type of animal that is in your attic. You should start by identifying when you hear most of the activities of the animals like if it is during the night or day, the type of noise you hear and other signs you can see like fecal materials and footprints. When you are not able to see the animals right away, you should learn the normal behavior of the animals and then consider eviction strategies.

When you hear activity in the attic mostly in March until October, the animal may be a female that has babies in the attic.

The animals that like to stay in the attic are raccoons and squirrels. When you hear the noises in the daytime, then it can be a squirrel in the attic. A squirrel is active most of the time in the day and the activity patterns will cease when it is getting dark.

When you hear noises in the nighttime, it can be a flying squirrel or a raccoon in the attic. The flying squirrels and raccoons like to work more during the night and they do not do much during the daytime.

If you can enter into the attic, then you can see what is living there. The animal is not likely to attack you since most of the time it will also be scared. It will stay away and may not come closer. If it is a squirrel, then you may see debris, leaves, nuts and their droppings.

If it is a raccoon, you will see the latrines where the raccoon defecates and urinates.

Go back to the How to Get Rid of Pests page or email us if you have any other questions about What is in my attic?