Big brown bats

If you live in Massachusetts, or New Hampshire, or most anywhere in New England, now is the time to bat-proof your home. Bat-proofing, or bat exclusion, simply means safely removing any bats that are nesting in your attic (or elsewhere), and then sealing openings that the bats are using to get inside. You probably already know whether or not you have bats because you have been living with their presence all summer (see Signs That You Might Have Bats in Your Attic).

This kind of work can’t be done earlier in the summer because young bats might be left behind in the nest. Many jurisdictions have regulations that protect bats and most restrict bat removal to specific dates after and before the breeding season. For example, in New Hampshire, bats cannot be excluded from their nesting site from May 15 to August 15. In Massachusetts, bat exclusion is allowed only during early spring, during the month of May, or in late summer/fall from Aug. 1 to October 15.

An exception is made if a person has come into direct contact with a bat which means the possibility of rabies transmission. In this case, states allow removal and testing of the bat to check for rabies.

Timing is Everything!

Bats can be born anytime from mid-May to mid-August. In most cases, bat pups are able to fly in July but don’t completely leave the nest for a few more weeks. If you close up openings or remove the mom during summer months when young are still in the nest, you will likely seal bat pups into your attic. The young will either die and smell, or they may find their way down into your living space. By mid-August, bats generally leave the nursery site to find a place to spend the winter.

However, some of our bats (big brown bats) do not migrate but will spend the winter where they are…in your attic or in your basement. This is why you should complete bat exclusion after the young can fly but before the winter months when resident bats may have settled in for the duration.

What Does Bat Exclusion Involve?

At Colonial, our bat exclusion program has two parts: removal of any resident bats and sealing of openings that bats are using. Don’t worry that bats might be sealed into your home. We install bat excluders on the primary entry points that the bats are using. These one-way tubes let the bats leave the space but they cannot find their way back in. While the tubes are in place, we begin permanently sealing all secondary openings that bats use to get inside. Once we’ve verified that all of the bats are gone, we complete the exclusion job, certifying that your home will remain bat-free for years to come.

We have been doing bat removal and bat exclusion since 1984. We have a team of highly trained Wildlife Removal Experts on our staff that specialize in humane removal of nuisance wildlife. Our bat exclusion work utilizes high quality materials that are warranted, and our bat control work is guaranteed for a full seven years. Call us today so we can do the job for you now before cold weather sets in.

For more on bat exclusion, check out these blogs:

• Bat Removal Has a Narrow Window…Don’t Delay!
• Now is the Time to Block Bats From Your Home
• Why Bat Removal and Exclusion in MA & NH must be Humane

Image: USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station Archive, USDA Forest Service, SRS, Bugwood.org