Help! I’m Trapped by a Squirrel!
FAST HELP FOR SQUIRREL ISSUES
Get Help Fast if trapped by a squirrel and removal is needed to control the squirrels
When it comes to wildlife removal, there’s no such thing as an “ordinary” workday. Every call brings its own unique challenges – it’s part of why I love my work. But when I answered my phone on this particular morning, I knew things were going to be really different. squirrel inside home
“Help! I’m trapped inside my house! Please, call the police, sheriff, anybody… But you’ve got to help me!”
The voice on the other end of the line sounded so scared that I wondered if there was a burglar in her house. The level of alarm in her voice was through the roof.
Calmly, I asked her to tell me where she lived and exactly what the problem was. In between panicked breaths, she managed to get it out:
“There’s a squirrel running around in my kitchen!”
I breathed a sigh of relief. Not a burglar – a squirrel removal. “OK ma’am. Stay calm. I’ll be right there.”
I got to her house in St. Louis, Missouri, as quickly as I could. The door was unlocked, but I knew from her phone call that she was trapped inside somewhere. When I made my way into her kitchen, the first thing I saw was a squirrel sitting on her sink, hunched up, nibbling on some bread.
Yes, he had made himself right at home, not at all perturbed by the panicked woman who was hiding nearby. I called out for her and the squirrel freaked out at the sound of my voice. He jumped right into a closed kitchen window, pulling the blinds and curtains down with him as he fell. Then he hit the ground and started running circles around the kitchen like it was a racetrack. We’re talking fast. Squirrels can reach up to 20 mph when they run, but this felt like 200! squirrel inside home
Squirrel Goals
My immediate goal was to contain the squirrel so he didn’t cause any more damage. I lunged at him and grabbed him by the haunches. He wasn’t about to be taken down so easy. He promptly turned around, looked at my hand, and sunk his teeth in hard.
It hurt like crazy, but I wasn’t about to let this little critter win. I didn’t let go, and grabbed him behind the head with my other hand. He was caught! But here I was, on the ground, bleeding all over the place with a wild squirrel squirming between my hands.
I hollered for the lady again and let her know that I had the squirrel contained. Slowly, she opened the pantry door where she had been hiding the whole time. She took one look at me, saw all the blood on the floor…
And passed out.
St Louis, Missouri wildlife removal servivces
Squirrel Capture
Quickly, I put the squirrel in a pet carrier so it couldn’t get away. I got a paper towel, wetted it with some water, and patted it on her cheek. She came to and looked at me.
“Did you kill the squirrel?” She sounded worried. squirrel inside home
Yes, she had passed out because she saw all the blood and thought I had killed the squirrel! As I cleaned up the house, she told me her version of what happened: the squirrel had launched at her from across the kitchen and tried to bite her neck. That was why she had been hiding.
Before I left, I was determined to figure out exactly how that squirrel got into the house so she wouldn’t have a problem with crazy kamikaze squirrels again. That’s when I saw a small trail of black soot in the kitchen. I follow it right back to the fireplace, where I could see little squirrel tracks. Turned out, her chimney didn’t have a cap on it and wildlife could just climb in and out freely. The warm air coming from the house in the winter had attracted the squirrel. I patched up the chimney and took the squirrel far, far away – 22 miles away, in fact.
I dropped that wily creature off in south Jefferson county, where there was an old, abandoned pecan orchard. He’d have a lot of trees with big holes to hide in and plenty of food for the rest of his squirrel days.
This is why I like to say that we not only rescue people from wildlife, but we rescue wildlife from people, too. When an animal’s trapped in your house, he’s just as scared as you are. We know how to rescue them (and you) and find them a great new home where they won’t bother you again. And we also know how to fix up your home so you won’t keep having the same animal infestations over and over.
If you live in St. Louis and would like your home inspected for secret squirrel entrances, let me know. We can help before the squirrel has you hiding in a pantry, making panicked phone calls. But if you ever find yourself cornered by wild animal, we can help with that too.
Michael E Beran
Master Falconer
314-502-8339
Wildlife Command Center FaceBook
