A Bat or Squirrel Is Inside Your House: What to Do (and What Not to Do)
Every fall, as nights get colder around Massachusetts, animals look for somewhere warm. Sometimes that somewhere is your house. If you just heard scratching overhead or saw a bat flying around your living room, take a breath. This is common, and there are calm, humane ways to handle it.
If a bat is in your living space
Stay calm and keep children and pets out of the room. Close the doors to the rest of the house.
Do not swat at it or try to grab it with bare hands.
Open an exterior door or window leading outside, and turn off the lights in the room if you can. Bats often find their own way out.
If a person or pet may have been in contact with the bat, or you found it in a room where someone was sleeping, contact your local board of health or your doctor for guidance. Do not release the bat in that case, because it may need to be tested.
Once the bat is out, do not assume the problem is over. A bat that got inside often means there is an opening somewhere. Read more in When Are Bats Most Active Around Your Home?.
Bats are a protected, beneficial part of the local ecosystem, so the goal is always to get them out safely rather than harm them. For how entry gets stopped the right way, see How to Prevent Bat Entry Into Your Home Safely.
If a squirrel is in your attic or walls
Scratching, running sounds in the morning and evening, or chewed material near the roofline are the usual signs.
Do not block the entry hole right away. A squirrel sealed inside may chew through walls or ceilings trying to get out, and a mother may be trapped away from her young.
Keep the area quiet and keep pets away from it.
Look from the outside, if it is safe to do so from the ground, for a gap near the eaves, vents or roofline. Our guide on how to prevent squirrels from entering your eaves shows the common weak spots.
Call a professional to confirm where the animal is getting in and whether there are young inside.
What not to do
Do not seal a hole until you are sure the animal is out.
Do not use mothballs, ultrasonic gadgets or home remedies and expect lasting results.
Do not set traps and leave them unchecked. Read One-Way Doors Versus Traps: Which Works? for why exit-focused methods are usually the better approach.
Do not go into a crowded attic without protection. Droppings and nesting material can carry germs.
Why the animal is inside matters more than the animal
Removing one bat or squirrel does not fix the opening it used. The lasting fix is finding every entry point and closing them once the animals are out. We cover the approach in How to Seal Animal Entry Points Without Trapping Wildlife.
When to call Harvey's Animal Evictions
Call us if you hear animals in your attic or walls, if a bat has been in your living space, or if you are not sure how the animal got in. We start with an inspection to find the entry points and explain your options in plain terms.
Ready to get the animal out and keep it out? Contact Harvey's Animal Evictions through the contact form or booking button on our website, or call us at (800) 692-0406.
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