Your backyard may attract lots of critters, especially during the winter when they often look for food and shelter. And while these animals are simply looking for ways to survive, there are ways you can make your home and yard unattractive to them, so they go somewhere to look for food – after all, some of these animals can bring diseases and cause property damage.

But how to deal with them in an effective and humane way? Let’s take a look at what you can do!

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. – Lao Tzu

Being humane

The first and most important thing to understand is that although these animals may become nuisances by stealing your food, destroying your yard and in some cases bringing diseases… They are just animals. They are just going around looking for food and shelter, they mean no harm and there’s no reason to treat them badly because of it.

You can however find ways to discourage them from nesting in your home – meaning they’ll just go somewhere to look for food.

If you find yourself having trouble with animals that have already nested or always seem to come back despite your best efforts to keep them away, call a professional. Not only will they help you prevent animals from invading your home, but will also find humane ways to make them leave or capture and relocate them in nature.

Remove easy sources of food and water

One of the first things you should do is remove or block easy sources of food and water. Garbage cans are often targeted by critters, but trees that yield fruit are also very attractive to them. 

If you have a plantation of vegetables, for example, it might be wise to cover them in some way to prevent easy access – or even install a fence around the perimeter, which makes it hard for most critters to get in.

Prevent critters from “moving in"

This goes for the literal and figurative sense – critters who find easy food, water and shelter near your home might nest somewhere nearby so they can quickly scout for more when necessary. But in some cases, they can literally move into your home inside vents, crawl spaces, or any small place they deem safe enough.

So it’s time to make it a little harder for them.

Trim your trees to prevent them from climbing over and entering your home. Make sure your vents and ducts are properly covered from the outside. Patch up any crawl space or hole around the house that would make for an easy way in.

Consider fencing

As mentioned before, fencing goes a long way in preventing critters from invading your yard – or at least, makes it considerably more difficult for most of them.

Deers will not even bother trying to jump over a mild fence, while rabbits and hares can’t go over it as easily. This already prevents many critters from coming in. Squirrels, racoons and skunks however may still find a way inside, since they can climb over trees and other structures. For these guys, consider applying the previous tips.

You don’t want critters jumping in your yard and going “BINGO!

You want them to go “Eh, maybe I’ll keep looking.

Don’t let garbage linger for too long

Garbage cans or exposed garbage bags are basically big red signs saying “free food. Critters will not hesitate to dive in and make a mess, especially if they have successfully found food in there before.

Never leave garbage bags exposed and whenever you put them on a bin, be sure to cover the bin. It already helps a lot.

Having trouble with pests and backyard critters in your home? Get free quotes from a pest control professional in your area today!


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