Do you guys have any tips on red squirrels. I have a job with them in the attic, I just can not find the access point for the life of me. I have caught them in the gutters with rat traps they refuse live traps, I am running out of ideas looking for any suggestion.

Take some picture of the house and post , did you try looking from the inside out there cold be light , pine squirrel holes can be hard to find , it should be on the pine tree side

Alot of times ,Reds like to enter from the ground level...Check the corners if the house has vynal siding, they can make there way up to the sofit and check the foundation out well for areas that they may be able to slide by the sill plate.

That true ,I just did a job ,made me scratch my head for a minute , they where getting threw the craw space grate ,ended up being . Once in the craw they where getting in the garage by a lilltle piece of sill plate missing , then in the attic threw a small hole in the drywall

I have went all around the foundation and the checked the sill plate and found nothing. The only spot I can not get to is under the deck. I also cut back a walnut and maple tree which they where using, I saw the activity when I first pulled in. The house is very old from the mid to late 1800s, with what appears to be two small additions.

I vote for "under the deck". I've caught more than a few reds using that route into the house. Decks, what would we do without them? I wonder how many deck jobs we have going right now? And after we're done, we usually get to trench 'em.

Is there can vents ,did you check that screen that just floats there

All fascia and ridge vents are good.

I heard they like raisins.

I’m with Paul on under the deck. They will even dig a few inches to get in. Remove a board or two along the wall so you can inspect it if you can’t get under it. I always tell my clients that once inside, they can pretty much get wherever they want.

For hard to reach areas with limited access, I'd recommend a mirror with at least a 3 foot extension on it and a good light with throw for projecting light in dark spaces directly off the mirror. Hard to beat if you utilize them right, they are on every squirrel, rat and mouse job. Found many access points with them where if I hadn't used them, they would have been missed.

I bought 1 of these, but I haven't used it yet.
https://www.schmittent.com/rbg-40-round-body-grip-trap
They make a square 1 about the same size.

More times then not we have found red squirrels going in at the foundation level or around holes in the block, stone, mortar missing areas, under siding corners low to the ground or decayed wood areas.

Something you need to learn to adjust too when inspecting problem areas around pine squirrels habitat. Elevated areas are prime points when working greys and flyers. My first few encounters with reds many years back had me scratching my head in how and where they critters were getting into the house. Especially when all the suspected areas were not the access points.

They certainly are not predictable and will teach you to look in places you would not typically look.

As long as you have access to the attic, you know where the squirrels are at and do not need to find the entry point. Make a corn stand platform like you would a martin and they will fall off to hang die for when you return.

Corn stand for those unfamiliar, is placement of an ear of corn on a tree, putting a platform on the tree under the corn with a trap on it like a muskrat platform and death to the squirrels. Just set two up in the attic and problem solved. Fox squirrels are like all animals in being stupid when you present them with what they want.

Colony traps are the way we trap most squirrels so we can clean them out in a couple of days. Single capture trapping takes too many trips back and forth along the way. They must go in an out daily due to their habits.

Establishing the entry point (s) is key in my experience to a good clean out and seal up as well as prevention for future issues of entry. Unless the structure is in very poor condition and such a result cannot be established.

At least that is how we operate for most wildlife structural entry problems. Some may do things differently I am sure. We rarely if ever set traps in an attic due to various reasons.

Right on. Many homeowners don't seem to realize this though.

Many are lied to as well. Lots of hacks out there trying to turn a quick nickel.


I know guys who have ignored openings and just removed the animal. Some continued to remove animals that were utilizing the openings and collecting $ knowing exactly what they were doing. Seal up is where the money is, especially when you add a ladder and heights. The folks who want to solve the problem will remove the animal and seal entry points to the best of their ability. If or when another animal gains entry by tearing through the structure so be it, deal with it when it happens. You're called to solve a problem, if the individual doing the job can't solve it they should advise the homeowner so the homeowner can take the appropriate steps by getting someone who can. To each their own.