bats in the attic

A Bat Free Attic Brings Peace Of Mind

 

The “Batman” Goes To Work

Jeff Norris is a rarity. He is a wildlife expert who specializes in controlling – that is, removing – bothersome animals.

We caught up with him on a Palmetto home inspection last week, when he was “Batman.”

Previous Job Well Done

He had rid the home of a brown bat infestation last year and visited to make sure the problem had not returned. It hadn’t.

In 2009, Norris meticulously sealed the outside: Bats can get in an area as wide as a quarter of an inch.

Then He installed a small one-way door that allows the bats to fly out in the evening to do whatever it is bats do.

But they only bang their heads upon return. The door won’t open.

“If you don’t address it, it will continue to multiply,” Norris said. “The thing is, they come back to the same spot.”

Lesson Learned

That’s one lesson Sharon Hanlon of Lakewood Ranch learned the hard way.

Though professing a terror of bats, she let things go last fall when she saw some bats fluttering around her house as she was doing yard work. Besides, the family doesn’t use the attic and none had entered her living quarters.

She thought they’d die off over the winter, or go away on their own. Neither of those happened.

So, when she noticed bat droppingsguano – on her roof this spring, she called Norris at Nuisance Wildlife Trapper.

“I was impressed with the way he spoke with me, 20 or 30 minutes talking about the problem,” Hanlon said.

She guessed that she had about 30 bats at her house.

“He said ‘It’s not a bad infestation,’ but I said one was way too many for me,” she recalled.

Norris has seen homes invaded by several hundred bats.

Worth Every Dollar

While the bat removal services don’t come cheap – maybe $1,000 for an average household – both Hanlon and the homeowner were satisfied.

The Palmetto man­ – who wanted to remain anonymous – found peace of mind.

“The most nerve-wracking part was them coming down into the home,” he said. “It makes it a little shaky when you sleep. It gives you concerns, it definitely does.”

Besides, he said, “They weren’t paying any rent.”

Norris respects living creatures.

Bats are very beneficial,” he said.

“You just don’t want them in your attic. And it’s illegal to kill any kind of bats.”

CALL 866-263-WILD (9453)

 

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