pests in my attic

[queen 1954]

hi, for the past 3 weeks i have heard something running around in my attic mainly late afternoon and evenings.the council say its unlikely to be a rat as im in a first floor flat and im wondering if its the squirrel that i often see in the garden.i intend to investigate soon but does anyone know what to look out for up there and any tips if it is a squirrel as the council dont deal with them.would appreciate some advice as i live on my own and find it creepy and not knowing what it is dosnt help thanks

[woodchopper]

First, find out if there is a hole big enough for the squirrel to get in - if there is block it up when you think it is outside - Secondly if you do see it in the garden and it is a grey squirrel, get someone to shoot it - they are a pest species and if you happen to catch them you are not allowed to release them again.
If it is mice in your attic you will see their droppings almost everywhere in the attic - lay some traps for them or poison bait.
Alternatively get Rentokil in - they do a good job.

[queen 1954]

thanks for your advice and hopefully i will solve the problem soon!

[RATTER15]

Unlikely to be squirrels, you will normally hear squirrels in your loft in the very early hours of the morning, if it is squirrels, under no circumstances block the hole up, if you do, the squirrel will chew it way in or out and can cause immense damage doing so, believe me I have seen it, either get it trapped or shot!!!!

My guess would be rats or mice, take a torch into the loft, don't be afraid of anything attacking you, that just ain't going to happen, look for for droppings, mouse droppings are tiny hard little pellets about 3mm long rats droppings are much bigger, up to 15 mm long.

Do not use Rentokil!! they charge extortionate fees and you can call in an independent pest control company for far less and get a very professional service. Rats are the least liked but far easier to get rid of!!

Good Luck!!!!

[RATTER15]

I forgot to mention, if you have squirrels nesting in the roof, the nest will usually be made of old roof insulation, they roll it into little balls and build a big pile of these little balls to form the nest, there will normally be more than one nest belonging to the same squirrel. They can also cause a lot of damage in the roof by chewing through roof timbers etc!!

[queen 1954]

well i do hear the noises between 3 and 4am too,dont think its mice as the noise is too loud and it sounds quite heavy .who knows but many thanks at least i know what signs to look for and if i can find out what it is can approach my landlord as i think they should deal with it .i did report it a week ago but have heard nothing from them which is typical ,cheers

[kaztuz]

Hi
We had mice in our loft and they were chewing the pipe lagging for the shower supply. Believe me I wasn't convinced it was mice because they were so loud and even used to wake me up. My husband looked in the loft a couple of times before we found out it was mice as there were no obvious signs like the droppings. Eventually we killed 10 mice using traps and touch wood have had not problems since.

[queen 1954]

ok thanks will bear that in mind,intend to have a look this weekend,once i know what im dealing with i wont feel so bad (i hope)!

[queen 1954]

many thanks for all your advice.ive just had pest control out and it did turn out to be mice(still cant believe the noise they make) however hopefully they will be gone soon.