I believe there is a squirrel living in my attic, how do i get rid of it?

Answer 1

Get cayenne pepper or something hotter and sprinkle it around your attic where you think it might be living. The spiciness will irritate the little fella without hurting him permanently, and maybe will make him find someone else's attic.

Answer 2

Go to your local Party Store and get a Strobe light that has a variable flash rate. (Radio Shack also use to sell these).

Set the strobe to flash at about 1 hertz (about 1 flash every second) and place it in the attic in an area that you believe the creature to be living. If your attic is open, just set it against one of the walls,or in a corner so it illuminate the entire attic. Also, away from the hole that they are getting in at.

After a few days, the light will annoy the creature enough that they will leave and at that time you should go patch the hole they were living in so they can't be come back. If your not sure they are gone yet, give it a few more days. They won't stay very long with those conditions.

This actually works it was recently featured in "Ask this Old House" on PBS.

Answer 3

You can catch it in a live trap. Go to your local hardware store, they should sell them. And I'm talking LOCAL, not Lowes or something. You have to bait and set it and check it every day. Your next problem if figuring out how it got in, find the hole and fix it.
DO NOT USE POISON. If it dies and you can't find it, if it gets in the walls it will stink.

Also to make it easier look in your yellow pages you may have a critter person that will do this for a nominal charge. My husband used to have a side business doing this and he charged 25-35 depending on how difficult the attic access was. (this business got to be way to busy for him to do so he sold it)
You also can call your local animal control and ask who they recommend or if maybe they will do it or they may rent traps (ours does)
Sometimes Pest control places will do it or know of someone who does.

Answer 4

Well now that you know how to kill it, if you would like to catch it and take it for a ride, you can get a trap called http://www.havahart.com/nuisance/cagetrap_quickguide.asp
These traps can be purchased at your local hardware store or all most any pet store, it is better than killing it as it will die up there and you will ahve to put up with the smell as it rots up there ,and if there is one there is more,
Last fall I removed six flying squirrels from my home, they had made it all the way down to the first floor ceiling, in our kitchen you could see hear them running in our drop ceiling and see them scurry in the florescent light, now that would have really stunk,

Answer 5

First you need to find the hole where they get in...make a small ONE WAY door out of heavy gauge screen or something like chicken wire that covers the hole...they will push thru it to get out but cant get back in...this is the same thing people do who have a opossum under their house...I gives them a way out but not back in...

Answer 6

You can try to put moth balls up there,Most of the time they don't like the smell(can't blame em)and it will run them out.I wouldn't recommend a poison,when it kills it, it will stink up your whole house.

Answer 7

How about putting your dog up there, then catch the thing in a fishing net.

Answer 8

Ask it very politely to vacate the premises. Usually works for me.

Answer 9

You cal an Extermenator or you trap it with a box and food or something

Answer 10

Charge him an outrageous amount of rent and demand a ridiculously high deposit.