Squirrel Poop
One of the biggest questions most customers ask me in the field is what kind of feces is this? How can I tell what kind of animal left these droppings in my attic? How do I know whether or not this group is indeed squirrel feces and not rat poop or opossum poop or raccoon poop? There a lot of distinguishing factors when it comes to determining squirrel poop, as you can tell from the pictures on this page. Yes, this is an article about Poop! So enjoy!
How big are squirrel droppings? Squirrel poop is about the size of a staple and about 1-3 cm in length; squirrel feces or squirrel poop will look a lot like a black seed. squirrel poop or squirrel feces is generally black. If the squirrel poop is very dry and brittle chances are that the squirrel poop is not fresh. If the squirrel droppings are very soft and mushy then chances are it is very fresh. If you look at the droppings in the attic or around your house and you see a white tip at the end of the dropping that is more often a reptile dropping. But if you see the squirrel droppings that look like seeds, a little oval, and there is no white at the end of it then you are more than likely dealing with squirrels and rats.
If you were trying to identify squirrel poop or trying to figure out how you can tell if you do indeed have squirrels in the attic (based on the poop that's on the insulation), you're going to look for the following distinguishing factors. Generally squirrel poop is about the size of a seed; it is about a half inch long and about 1-3 cm thick. Depending on the size and the age of the squirrel that is in your attic, squirrels also leave a lot of poop behind. I have been in attics that were completely covered. Squirrel breeding cycles are very fast and the population can grow. So, if you see a lot of feces in the attic or even just a little bit of squirrel poop, you want to make sure you get on it very very fast. Most of the time when you have squirrels in the attic, it's going to be a female that is pregnant and about to have her babies. Like I said earlier, the biggest giveaway with how to tell if it is squirrel poop is going to be the size and color. Take a look at these pictures and they will help you identify which type of squirrel you have in your attic or in the house.
Regardless of what animal your poop belongs to, you want to make sure that you DO NOT touch the feces you find in your attic. You should call a professional for wild animal poop removal. If you do decide to remove poop you find in your attic without the assistance of a professional wildlife control team, you definitely want to make sure you have a respirator on, because squirrel feces contains several different types of bacteria and insects that can harm you and potentially lead to death. One horrible health issue that stems directly from squirrel poop is roundworm. Roundworm, if ingested, leads to a variety of symptoms and can become fatal. squirrel roundworm can become ingested by simply breathing it in if you are around squirrel feces. If you do not treat the roundworm that you ingest from squirrel poop, you can eventually die. There are also other bacteria affiliated with squirrel poop such as histoplasmosis and hantavirus, which are both diseases that can lead to severe respiratory issues.
Whenever rats, opossums and squirrels poop, they will defecate wherever they're walking. The squirrel feces will be all throughout the attic, in the insulation, under the insulation, everywhere, that is why you will need to sanitize the entire attic to eliminate any of the bacteria. Squirrel poop looks very similar to rodent poop so do not be surprised if you misdiagnose the infestation, it's an easy mistake to make. You will want to look at other factors, do you see chew marks, are you hearing the noises during the day or the night, does the poop in the attic kinda fan out like a christmas tree or is it all one shape? Those are the factors that will help determine Squirrel Poop vs Rat Poop.
Another frequent question that customers call me and ask me about is what does squirrel poop smell like? To be honest with you, it smells exactly how it sounds…terrible. Feces from squirrels have a very strong odor mixed in with urine, so the feces will start to smell like ammonia as well as rotting feces. Flies, larvae and other parasites will gather around this squirrel poop in your attic, so you want to make sure you're extremely careful. Remember that diseases can easily and instantly become ingested or inhaled from simple proximity with squirrel roundworm eggs can also be found in feces and urine from squirrels, which can also be inhaled. Larvae that is inside this parasite will start to affect the central nervous system of a human, causing diarrhea, dehydration and can lead to further health issues. For this reason, you should hire professional squirrel trappers and professional squirrel removal companies when dealing with squirrels in the attic. A professional squirrel company like mine or any of the vendors that I list and have worked with use proper respiratory safety equipment, including hazmat suits, to protect the working technicians during squirrel feces removal. Professionals will remove the entirety of squirrel poop and squirrel urine in the attic that safely to ensure the environment is clean and sanitized and prevent any inhalation of hazardous diseases. Once squirrel poop is removed by a professional wildlife control company, your squirrel trapper will sanitize the attic and all of the areas where the squirrel poop was in order to guarantee the safety of our customer’s clients and family.
Squirrel droppings around your property, home, lawn or attic need to be removed immediately. squirrel poop does smell; squirrels are wild animals that live outside. Squirrels also tend to defecate in residential, as well as lakes, rivers and ponds. If you find squirrel poop in any of these places or around your house or attic, stay away from it and make sure your dogs, cats and kids don't touch it, eat it or play with it. You do not want your children or pets to ingest any of the harmful bacteria and diseases that are affiliated with squirrel poop or squirrel urine. Excrement found your attic commonly belongs to squirrels; if you think you may have an issue with squirrel infestation in your attic, please inspect the images on the left to confirm that what you have found indeed belongs to squirrels. You'll be able to get a good idea of what species you're found feces belong to. There are a lot of features of squirrel poop that makes it different than other animal feces, so please pay a lot of attention to these. These squirrel feces pictures will help you when trying to identify whether or not you are dealing with squirrels in your attic or squirrels pooping on your lawn.
2017 Updates on Identifying Squirrel Poop!
We all like squirrels, they're small, fluffy and fun to watch run around. But what we can all agree on not being fun, is anyone or anything pooping where it shouldn't! What comes along with pooping in the improper places is, smells, damage to your home, and worst of all different diseases that can make you sick. The biggest thing you need to remember is the sooner is better, the more you sit and ignore the scratching sounds, and the smells the more damage will be done to your home and to your health. The health issues that come with squirrel poop is the risk that you can face contracting leptospirosis, which is a disease that will manifest itself much like a flu, the first characteristics that will show are severe headaches, and body aches. If the disease were to reach the later stages it can result in organ failure, and internal bleeding. With leptospirosis you can end up being hospitalized if it goes untreated and ends up in the latter stage where you end up with internal bleeding and organ failure, if you do catch it early you can treat it with antibiotics. Another risk you face is contracting salmonella, with that comes sever body and headaches, and some of the same symptoms of food venoming, it's not as life threatening but still something you just don't want to deal with. Another issue that comes with having squirrels in your home is the risk of them chewing through and on anything they can get their paws on, whether it's wood beams, your insulation, or the wires in your attic. Also with them being in your attic they can end up having babies which results in a bit more damage to the home. So always make sure that you get this handle right away before the damage starts, also the squirrels sometimes take a “spray method” when urinating and pooping which in turn can cover a large amount of space. So as soon as you hear any scratching noise you should get that handled as quickly as possible. So, the bottom line is don't go playing with poop!
If you think you are having an issue with squirrel poop and want to get an expert opinion, give me a call! My name is Brendan Mangnitz with Centurian Wildlife Control and I am always available to help identify what kind of feces you have found and would be happy to send one of our technicians or companies I work with out to assist you.