4 Tips to Keep Wildlife Out of Your Home

Wildlife can be a nuisance in your home. They often find their way inside and make themselves at home, sometimes causing damage to the property. To keep them out of your house, there are a few things you can do. Read on for 4 tips that will help you in your quest for wildlife removal in Dallas.

Elimination of Wildlife Shelters

Remove any brush or other debris near the house including shrubs, which should be trimmed, so they are no more than three feet high. This way, animals cannot hide there.

 Cleaning a gutter of leaves and other debris, so water does not accumulate. You should do this by using a leaf blower or vacuum cleaner. Animals often use these areas for shelter during hot days when it is difficult for them to find refuge elsewhere. 

Trim branches of trees that hang over your roof. You should also cut tree limbs back if they hang close enough to touch windows. Make sure all doors and windows leading outside have screens securely installed; this keeps small pests like mosquitoes and flies out while also preventing larger wildlife from entering your home.

Elimination of Openings

Check for any holes around the exterior of your home, including weepers or vents that have been torn away from windows and doors. Fill these in with a sealant and can also use fencing to prevent animals from entering your home.

The screen on an attic vent should be securely fastened so it cannot become loose over time due to repeated opening and closing; this keeps out insects but also prevents wildlife like squirrels who might try to enter through there when they are thirsty. 

Close off crawl spaces under porches, sheds, and decks by installing metal bars that run horizontally across the opening when you build these structures. This way, large animals like raccoons cannot make their way down into these areas when they seek shelter from predators.

Also read: 5 Tips to Maintain Your Fencing

Set Up Traps

Set up traps in any areas around the exterior of your home that are vulnerable to wildlife. They should be set so they only capture animals you want to get rid of but not the baby or injured animals. You should consult a licensed trapper for advice on how best to do this. 

Place the traps near trees, shrubs, and other landscaping plants where small mammals sometimes make their homes. Take note of places where animal activity has been observed like an open vent with droppings nearby. 

Set these traps during hours when wild animals would typically be active since they use different feeding patterns depending on the type of creature it is. They will avoid heavy human traffic at all costs because many predators hunt by watching humans’ movements. 

Coyotes, raccoons, opossums, and other small predators can chew the rubber seals around an outdoor water heater as well as make their way into it, so use metal flashing around the entranceway, which prevents them from entering but still allows air circulation. 

Avoid Feeding Wildlife

Keep your garbage can covered with a tight lid or securely tied shut so animals cannot get into it from other areas of the yard like under porches, sheds, and decks where they could hide while waiting for an opportunity to steal trash cans’ contents at night when you are sleeping.

If you must, feed wildlife in designated locations only—these should be away from your home.  This is because these creatures have become accustomed to humans feeding them due to habitat loss, so they often come near homes looking for scraps. This makes them even more likely than usual to enter neighborhoods because wild animals already know what we are capable of providing for them. 

If a wild animal has become accustomed to feeding near your house, gradually move the location of its feeder farther away by one week at a time while simultaneously adding deterrents such as strobe lights, citronella candles, hanging bells, or motion-activated sprinklers in that area. This will help prevent it from coming back again.

Do not leave garbage cans open overnight. This eliminates odors from attracting hungry wildlife near your house by making sure any potential sources of food have been eliminated in advance.