Squirrels & Queen Wasps - PEST UK

Providing pest control services in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hampshire, Hertfordshire, Kent, London, Middlesex, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, Surrey, West Midlands, West Sussex, Wiltshire. Est. 1985.

Squirrels & Queen Wasps

In Pests, Stories from the Pest Control team, Wasps

Squirrels & Queen Wasps:
We had a difficult situation today. Yesterday we set fen traps and poison in the loft of a block of flats for a Housing Association in Caversham, Reading, Berkshire for a reported squirrel problem.  Late last night a squirrel was caught in one of the fen traps.

It was not ‘miss caught’ as occasionally happens, but there was some sounds of banging a in the loft as the squirrel died. The lady living there  was very distressed and left a message on our answer phone telling us this and saying that she would be staying the night elsewhere as she was so distressed. Today Rick Pellen of PEST UK visited the property. The squirrel had been caught cleanly around the neck so death would have been swift.

The lady was not pleased and said she would be reporting the matter. She asked why we couldn’t use ‘pellets’ as another company had done before. We did, in fact, have bait in the loft but as is quite common with squirrels, it was untouched. Even when the bait has had peanut butter or chocolate spread added to make it more attractive , it can still take  weeks for the squirrels to feed on poison bait.
Grey Squirrel Feeding on spilt bird food

In this case the customer wanted the squirrels gone quickly, so we used a legal method (fen traps) as well as the only poison allowed for squirrels (Warfarin) and the treatment worked.

It is unfortunate that the squirrel was trapped at night when the customer was home, and we understand how upsetting it was for her to hear. If the squirrel had been trapped while she was out, she would not have had to suffer this distress, and in fact would probably have been pleased that it had been dealt with so quickly and efficiently. It is difficult to balance the needs of us humans in our homes with the pest who inadvertently end up causing us problems,but that is life and death.
Squirrel caught in trap

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are getting more enquiries regarding Queen Wasps, which are being reported as Hornets or Queen Bees. These Queen Wasps are emerging from hibernation, not properly but often when they are disturbed by artificial light and/or heat. Naturally they won’t be coming out of hibernation for a couple of months yet. Wasp
BPCA Squirrels

NEXT/PREVIOUS:

DIY Pest Control »
Rats, Sewer Problems «