Scratching in the wall during the day is almost always a squirrel. They are active in daylight, so nighttime noise usually points to rats or raccoons instead. Once you are fairly sure it is a squirrel, the job is to find where it got in and give it a way out that it cannot get back through. Not sure what you are hearing? My attic noise identifier matches the timing and the sound to the animal.
Confirm it is a squirrel
- Time of day. Squirrels are active during daylight, especially morning and late afternoon. Nocturnal sounds mean something else.
- The sound. Scratching, scurrying, and gnawing, moving in short bursts with pauses.
- Droppings. Squirrel droppings are oblong, about the size of a grain of rice, near entry points.
- The hole. A chewed opening roughly the size of a golf ball near the roofline, eaves, or siding.
A quick test: tap the wall near the noise. A squirrel usually freezes and goes quiet for a minute or two. Rats and mice are less likely to pause.
Find the entry point
Walk the outside of the house and check the eaves and soffits for gaps and chew marks, the gable and ridge vents for torn screens, where the siding meets the roofline, and around pipes, wires, and cables. Mark anything bigger than a quarter. The main entry hole is the one with the most chew marks, grease stains, and droppings.
Get it out safely
- Cut a piece of quarter-inch hardware cloth a bit bigger than the hole.
- Attach it at the top and sides, leaving the bottom open and bent outward. That makes a one-way door: the squirrel can leave but not re-enter.
- Wait and listen. After a couple of quiet days, and with no fresh droppings, the squirrel is out.
- Take the door off and seal the hole permanently with hardware cloth screwed in place, then backfill with foam and caulk.
- If one is stubborn, set a live trap near the hole and check it often. Relocation rules vary by state, so check first.
Do not just seal the hole while the squirrel is inside. A trapped squirrel chews through drywall and wiring trying to get out, and if it dies in the wall you get the smell and the flies that follow.
Seal up for good
Once the squirrel is out, go over the whole exterior. Cover eaves, soffits, and vents with hardware cloth, pack pipe and wire openings with steel wool before foaming, and cap the chimney. The goal is to make sure the next squirrel does not find the same door.
Frequently Asked Questions
Without food or water, only a few days. That is why you do not leave it, both for the animal’s sake and because a dead squirrel in the wall is its own problem.
Not reliably. If it fell into the wall cavity from the attic, or its entry hole is now blocked, it cannot find its way out. A one-way door is the reliable fix.
Scratching, scurrying, and gnawing in short bursts. Louder than a mouse, lighter than a raccoon.
A pro usually charges for the inspection, the one-way door, and the sealing, and it runs a few hundred dollars and up. If the squirrel died inside and the wall has to be opened, it costs more.
