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Raccoons Escaped

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Raccoons Escaped

We were called out today to find out what was running around in a customer’s attic.  I pulled up to the house and immediately had suspicions of it being an issue with raccoons in the attic as I could see a large hole in the soffit at the roof joint.  I went through my usual routine of trying to find out how long the animal has been there, what the customer is hearing, when they hear it, and any other interesting details.

People have described what they’re hearing in a lot of colorful ways but this was probably my favorite.

The customer said, “every night it sounds like someone is bowling in my attic.”

I couldn’t help but laugh.  She went on to describe how it sounds like a really heavy ball rolling across the ceiling to the other end of a room or the house and slamming into something.  Then it would go another way, over and over.  It definitely sounded like she had raccoons in her attic.  I grabbed my camera, flashlights, and respirator as I prepared to check the attic out for damage and to confirm that it was raccoons she was hearing.  Sometimes they’re still in the attic when I go in but unless you corner them or get near their babies, they stay clear.

The Raccoon Search Begins

I popped open the attic access and instantly heard something scamper across the attic and out of the hole in the soffit I saw earlier.  I walked outside with my camera to try and find the animal and after a couple minutes spotted two juvenile raccoons behind the house fifteen feet or so into the tree line.  I walked a little closer to get clear of the brush and limbs to get some pictures.  One of them took off deeper into the wooded area.  The other stayed put, clung to a tree, as raccoons are great climbers.  I snapped a couple pictures and went back to finish the attic and exterior inspection.

Luckily, the raccoons hadn’t done any damage to the HVAC system or wiring in the attic.  You could definitely see where they had been “bowling” though.  Insulation was thrown everywhere as they ran back and forth, playing just like dogs do with one another.

Orlando Raccoon in attic found nesting in tree
Juvenile Raccoon in Tree 
Orlando Raccoon in attic found nesting in tree
Orlando Raccoon in attic found nesting in tree

Rat vs Mold

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A Tall Of Rats And Mold

I received a frantic call from a homeowner that had a rat running around her condo on Siesta Key. The rat had been:

  • eating her fruit on the counter,
  • getting into her trash,
  • chewing on the couch &
  • leaving droppings and urine everywhere.

We responded and did a complete inspection of the condo.  It appeared as though the rat was coming and going thru a hole under the dishwasher in the slab. We tried to take the dishwasher out so we could seal the entry point but the tile had been installed after the dishwasher, so it was basically built-in.  We finally got the dishwasher’s feet turned down enough to clear the counter and tile, allowing it to clear enough to be slid out.  Or so we thought as the copper water line had no slack for us to pull the dishwasher out. So, again we are at a stand still.  A plumber was called to remove the dishwasher so we could seal the entry points.

Since we could not seal the entry point right away we set numerous rat traps throughout the condo to capture and remove the unwanted pest.  Continuing the inspection of the condo, we went into the guest bedroom where the home owner was concerned that there might be something in the water turn off area since we found an opening under the dishwasher already .  She opened the closet and went to move a few items that were stored in the closet and wow, were we surprised.

It appeared as though there was a leak of some sort coming from the water turn off area.  The wall was covered in black mold. We removed the panel to the water turn off area and there was definitely a leak, and it was still leaking. Water was just running out of the cast iron pipe.  I advised the homeowner that she needed to call the management company and also a plumber again.

Everyone Working On A Solution To Be Rat And Mold Free

At this point the rodent was the least of their concern.  This leak had been going on for sometime because unfortunately it was in a closet in an unoccupied room, used only as storage and rarely looked at.  The management company sent out a mold specialist and a plumber and everyone is working together to get this homeowner “back-to-normal!”


 

 

Squirrels Take Over

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Squirrels Running Rampant In Podiatry Office

Nuisance Wildlife Removal received a phone call late Thursday afternoon from a Sarasota Podiatry office in reference to a very foul, dead animal smell.  They also said that they had and are still hearing a lot of noises in the drop ceiling of the office.

We scheduled an appointment for Friday since they were planning on being closed. With the office being closed up over night as soon as we arrived and the door was open  the horrible dead animal smell had taken over the entire office.

Fortunately the staff had somewhat pin-pointed the area of where the smell was most prominent.  It seemed to be coming from the bottom of the wall behind the drywall.  We went into the attic to see if we could retrieve the dead animal in the wall but the way it was constructed there was not a way to reach all the way to the bottom. We could however see it laying right at the base on the ground and it was a squirrel.

Dead Squirrel Found And Removed

So, in order to cause the least damage to the building while retrieving the dead animal we removed the base board and cut a small piece of drywall out at the bottom of the wall.  This minimized the necessary repairs.  After the dead animal was removed and an enzyme treatment was done to eliminate the odor and bacteria, we then did a complete inspection of the commercial property.

There were a total of five other offices joined together and we knew that they did not want to encounter the same issue. Upon inspection it was noted that the squirrels had definitely made themselves right at home. There were several nesting sights throughout the building and while we were inspecting we saw a squirrel exiting the building from an opening in the soffit.  We proposed an estimate to seal the entire commercial complex and to humanely trap and remove the squirrels.

The owner of the building was more than happy with all of our suggestions and gladly accepted. We will be relieving  the doctors of their “unwanted” patients in no time!

 

Squirrels Take Foreclosed Home

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Squirrels Are The New Neighbors

We have all heard that the banks have a lot of foreclosed and bank owned homes and that they can not maintain them. Often times they will find homeless living in the foreclosed homes.

Well not in this case! Nuisance Wildlife Removal was asked to go out to a foreclosed, bank owned home in Valrico, FL  and inspect to see what type of animal had decided to take-up residency.

Squirrels Definitely Can Do A Lot Of Damage

Upon arrival to the home it was noted that there were definite animal entry signs, from what looked to be that of a squirrel.   Not only were there chewing and gnawing marks in the wood fascia and soffit but due to the lack of maintenance the soffit had been blown out and created quite the free-way for entry. As if that wasn’t enough damage caused by the squirrels, when I opened the door to the home in Valrico, FL  I immediately noticed water all over the floor. I just assumed that a pipe had busted. I ventured into the kitchen area where the water seemed to be coming from and as soon as I turned the corner there was insulation, drywall, and a lot more water all over the place. The ceiling had collapsed from the squirrels chewing on the plumbing lines that were ran in the attic, causing a leak, and then causing the ceiling to collapse. I immediately called the management company to report the findings. They were astonished at the damage that such a little animal like a squirrel could do.

The Squirrels Had To Go So Says The Bank

We completed the inspection of the rest of the property and it was quite evident that the squirrels had taken up residency in the attic.  There were several nesting sights, a lot of droppings and urine, and several areas in the AC duct work that had been compromised. It is definitely time for an eviction on these squirrels, we plan on sealing up the house and live trapping the squirrels for relocation to a more suitable habitat.