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If you hear scratching in your attic, see squirrels running across your roof, or notice damage to your home’s exterior, the first step toward solving the problem is a thorough squirrel inspection.
At Frontline Animal Removal, we provide professional squirrel removal and wildlife damage repair throughout the Akron, Canton, and Kent, Ohio areas, serving homeowners and businesses in Summit, Stark, and Portage Counties.
One thing we learn over and over again is that the most obvious damage is usually where squirrels are getting inside. But, sometimes it is not.
A careful inspection often makes the difference between permanently solving the problem and chasing squirrels around the same house year after year.
Why a Professional Squirrel Inspection Is So Important
Eastern Gray Squirrels are excellent climbers and determined home invaders. Homes and commercial buildings offer warm, dry shelter that protects them from predators and Ohio’s changing weather. Once they find a way inside an attic or wall void, they build nests, raise young, and often return year after year if the opening is not repaired correctly.
Many people assume they know exactly where the squirrels are entering because they notice chewed wood or damaged vents. Sometimes they’re right—but many times they aren’t.
That’s why every squirrel job at Frontline Animal Removal begins with a complete inspection of the structure.
Rather than focusing on one damaged area, we examine the entire building from multiple angles. We look for fresh chewing, worn travel paths, stains, rub marks, displaced insulation, droppings, nesting material, and subtle clues that reveal how squirrels are actually using the structure.
Where Squirrels Commonly Enter Homes
Over the years we’ve found squirrels entering buildings through nearly every type of construction opening imaginable. Some of the most common entry points include:
- Ridge vents
- Gable vents
- Roof return corners
- Soffits and fascia
- Roof intersections
- Plumbing and utility penetrations
- Construction gaps
- Damaged trim boards
- Chimneys and chimney flashing
- Areas weakened by water damage or wood rot
Squirrels are persistent chewers. They often enlarge tiny openings by chewing through wood, aluminum, vinyl, or plastic until they create an entrance large enough to squeeze through.
Because they spend so much time traveling along rooflines, the actual entry hole is frequently much higher than homeowners expect.
This Week’s Inspection: The Obvious Answer Was Wrong
This week’s inspection provided a perfect example of why experience and patience matter.
Ryan arrived at a home where the damage seemed obvious from the ground.
The gable vent showed several chewed louvers that immediately caught everyone’s attention. From below, it appeared almost certain that this was where the squirrels were entering the attic.
Once Ryan climbed up for a closer inspection, however, the story changed completely.
Although the vent had obvious squirrel damage, the protective screen behind the louvers was still intact. The squirrels had chewed the exterior vent, but they had never made it through the screening.
The real entry point was nearby.
Further inspection revealed missing ridge cap shingles and an opening along the ridge vent where the squirrels were actually entering the attic.
Had the inspection stopped at the damaged vent, the true problem would have been missed.
As Ryan explains in this week’s YouTube video, wildlife inspections require keeping an open mind. Animals don’t always behave the way we expect them to. It’s easy to focus on the first thing that looks suspicious, but solving wildlife problems requires checking the entire structure before making any conclusions.
Why Experience Matters
Professional wildlife inspections aren’t simply about finding damage—they’re about interpreting what that damage means.
Older chewing may no longer be active.
A damaged vent may look terrible but still be functioning perfectly.
Meanwhile, a much smaller opening nearby may be the location squirrels are using every day.
Frontline Animal Removal systematic inspection routine helps ensure nothing is overlooked. We inspect rooflines, corners, vents, flashing, and transitions while looking for the subtle signs that distinguish an old problem from an active one.
This careful process allows us to recommend the proper trapping or exclusion strategy and repair the correct location the first time.
Inspection Leads to Better Repairs
Finding the correct entry point is only half the job.
Once squirrels are safely removed, we repair the damaged area using materials designed to resist future squirrel activity while maintaining the appearance and function of your home.
Simply covering one hole without understanding how squirrels are using the structure often leads to them chewing a new opening nearby. That’s why removal and repairs always go hand in hand.
Learn More About Squirrel Inspections
If you’d like to better understand what we look for during an inspection, we’ve written about this topic before. You may also enjoy these related articles from our website:
- Squirrel Inspection Tips (Video): https://frontlineanimalremoval.com/squirrel-inspection-tips-video
- How to Tell if Squirrels Are in Your House: https://frontlineanimalremoval.com/how-to-tell-if-squirrels-are-in-house
These articles provide additional information about identifying squirrel activity before the damage becomes more serious.
Need a Squirrel Inspection in Northeast Ohio?
If you hear scratching overhead, notice squirrels running across your roof, or suspect wildlife has entered your attic, don’t rely on the most obvious clue alone.
At Frontline Animal Removal, we perform thorough squirrel inspections for homeowners and businesses throughout Akron, Canton, Kent, and the surrounding communities in Summit, Stark, and Portage Counties. Our goal is to locate the actual entry point, safely remove the squirrels, and professionally repair the damage so your wildlife problem stays solved.
A careful inspection is the foundation of every successful squirrel removal project—and sometimes, as Ryan discovered this week, the real answer is only a few feet away from where everyone first expects it to be.