What is Wildlife Exclusion?

A raccoon and a skunk looking through the garbage at someone's home in Baton Rouge LA - Dugas Pest Control Wildlife exclusion is one of the most important services that we offer here at Dugas Pest Control. Especially as the temperatures wane into winter, wild animals of all sorts are looking to take shelter on our properties, even inside our homes. To prevent wild animals from taking up residence in your home, bringing with them the risks of property damage and disease, it’s important to sign up for wildlife exclusion services administered by your local exterminators. But what exactly is wildlife exclusion? To learn more about how we keep wild animals out of our customers’ homes around Baton Rouge LA, read on!

What Does “Wildlife Exclusion” Mean?

Wildlife exclusion is the professional process of preparing homes or businesses to defend against potential wildlife problems, as well as the safe removal of any active wildlife on the property. It’s an all-encompassing service that shouldn’t just happen once. Many wild animals are adaptive and opportunistic—they will take any opportunity to find shelter or food as soon as it presents itself. By signing up for wildlife exclusion with Dugas Pest Control, you can expect the following services:

  • Identification of present wildlife, which often includes raccoons, squirrels, opossums, mice, or rats.
  • Humane removal of all active animals.
  • Damage repairs, waste removal, and material replacement (wood, insulation, wires, and more.)
  • Entry point sealing using caulk, sheet metal, or otherwise applicable materials.
  • Return visits as necessary to maintain a wildlife-free space.

Benefits of Wildlife Exclusion Services

Trying to deal with wildlife on your own can be ineffective and dangerous. There are many benefits to hiring professional exterminators for wildlife exclusion services:

  • It’s humane. We only take the necessary measures to remove animals from our customers’ properties, prioritizing humane methods in all cases.
  • It keeps animal families together. Many people make the mistake of removing animal mothers and not their babies, leaving the young to die. Beyond being inhumane, this can cause unpleasant odors and new wildlife presence on your property. Wildlife exclusion focuses on getting the entire family out.
  • It’s a long-term solution. Trapping and removing animals does not get to the root of the problem. Professional wildlife exclusion services will discourage future animals from nesting in your yard.
  • It’s affordable. It actually costs less money to deal with pests humanely! Prioritizing prevention with a company that looks out for local wildlife is the best option for your conscience and your wallet.

Can I Keep Wildlife Out On My Own?

There are certain steps you can take to keep wildlife off of your property, like sealing gaps and cracks in your foundation, siding, roof fixtures, doors and windows, and more. Cleaning up your yard by clearing out yard waste and trimming your plants often will also help. However, sometimes you can’t control a wildlife infestation without the help of local pest professionals. At Dugas Pest Control, we bring over 60 years of experience to the table every time we help relocate wildlife. Contact us today for a free quote!

Wildlife Exclusion – The Secret Weapon in Pest Control

Raccoons can be avoided in your Baton Rouge LA home with wildlife exclusion services from Dugas Pest Control.Whether you live in rural Louisiana or near an urban area, one thing that we all have to deal with is wildlife. Even in cities and suburban neighborhoods, the south is full of animals like possums, raccoons, squirrels, and other rodents that don’t mind being around people. The bad news is that because these pests are so used to people, they are also frequently found trying to make a home inside your home. In order to get them out, and prevent them from doing it again, wildlife exclusion is the key. This pest control method provided by the experts at Dugas Pest Control ensures your property is not suitable for nuisance wildlife invasions. Read on to learn more!

What Exactly Is Wildlife Exclusion?

Wildlife exclusion is an essential part of keeping nuisance wildlife away. It involved sealing your home to the animals using preventative measures such as sealing holes in your roof, installing screens over windows and doors, and more. A professional wildlife control expert will thoroughly inspect your property to look for vulnerabilities that could lead to animals making their way in through your crawl space or attic. The most common wildlife problems we face here in Baton Rouge include:

Why Do You Need Wildlife Exclusion Services?

While it’s completely normal to see wildlife out in nature, you likely don’t want to share your home with them. Here’s why wildlife exclusion is so important:

  • First, they can cause major damage to your home. When these animals make nests in the crawlspace or attic, they can ruin electrical wiring, plumbing, or foundational material with chewing and other behaviors. By nesting to protect litters, rodents like these can cause damage to your home.
  • These pests can also present a danger to your family, especially small children who might not know better than to approach these animals, and anyone who tries to capture or “shoo” them out on their own. That is because many of these animals carry diseases. They can also attack if they feel threatened, which can cause serious injury.
  • Finally, these animals also present a danger to your pets for the same reason. If one of these animals feels threatened by a dog that has rooted them out, or if they feel like your cat, prowling through the attic for mice, presents a threat to their food source, they may attack and either injure your pet or pass on a disease.

How Dugas Can Help

If you want to avoid a wildlife problem on your property, Dugas can help. We’ll do a thorough inspection of your home, the foundation, the roof, and other access points, and find the areas where these animals got inside. After blocking off these entrances, we’ll show you how to make sure your home stays wildlife-free. Working with a local pest control company like Dugas means you can rest assured knowing your safety is our top priority. Get in touch with our wildlife control team today to learn how we can help!

Should I Insulate My Home With TAP?

TAP Insulation in Baton ROUGE LA - Dugas Pest ControlTAP® Insulation is one of the best home insulation options for homeowners here in Baton Rouge and nationwide. This is because TAP not only outperforms traditional insulation in noise reduction and energy efficiency, but it also acts as a form of ongoing pest control for your home. Infused with borate, TAP wards of insects and pests that are common in Louisiana homes. Its pest control properties aren’t the only benefit of TAP, either. Read on to learn more about the many benefits of insulating your home with TAP!

What Makes TAP Insulation Different?

There are several home insulation options, but TAP Insulation has proven to be a game-changer for several reasons. TAP is energy-efficient, environmentally-friendly, and controls pests in the home. The many benefits include:

  • As an energy-efficient option, TAP can reduce heating and cooling costs by up to 30%.
  • TAP is environmentally friendly by using recycled paper diverted from landfills to create the product.
  • This insulation is capable of filling the nooks and crannies that are unreachable with traditional insulation.
  • TAP Insulation is the only insulation registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
  • More cost-effective than traditional insulation, TAP is a one-time investment with no need for re-treatments.
  • TAP can be installed over existing insulation and comes with a lifetime warranty.

Pests Controlled with TAP Insulation

TAP is infused with a borate. When ingested by pests, the borate will stop their metabolism. Some of the many pests controlled with TAP include: 

Home Insulation Services in Baton Rouge

Bottom line: you can’t get a better home insulation product than TAP. Dugas is proud to be your local installer of TAP Insulation. Our certified technicians are licensed to install TAP in homes. To learn more or to schedule an appointment, contact our team today!

What type of snakes live in Louisiana?

banded-water-snake Snakes may not be anyone’s favorite creature to spot in their yard, but they are fascinating reptiles and a part of Louisiana’s natural heritage. They are also important members of our local ecosystem as for every snake with a bad reputation, there are many others that help keep the balance of nature in order.

Nevertheless, many LA residents worry about snakes hiding in their backyards, underneath decks and patios or lingering in woodsy areas. Many snakes are poisonous and leave behind painful bites. That being said, the majority of snakes in LA are harmless and are actually beneficial to the ecosystem as they limit the amount of insects and rodents and contribute to the “balance of nature.”

Interesting Facts:

1. Did you know that smaller snakes feed more than large ones? That’s right; small snakes will feed as much as once per day while large ones only eat once every two weeks.

2. When snakes are not searching for food, they’re relatively quiet and secret, and during the summer when the weather is warm, snakes become nocturnal.

How to Tell Venomous from Non Venomous Snakes

Even though snakes are an important part of the Louisiana ecosystem, they don’t get a free ticket to your home, especially because there are some breeds that are highly venomous. An easy way to tell a venomous snake from a non-venomous one is by the head. Non-venomous snakes have narrow heads, round pupils and no pit between the eyes and nostrils. Venomous snakes have triangle-shaped heads, elliptical pupils and a pit between the eyes and nostrils. A pest control company can also do a quick evaluation of the tail to determine if the snake is venomous.

If you do find snakes by your home, remove their habitat if possible; look for piles of wood or overgrown vegetation for example. Also be sure to seal openings to the home, garage or shed so that the snakes don’t relocate in these areas.

So, what types of snakes are common in the state of Louisiana?

  • Banded Water Snake
  • Black Pine Snake
  • Brown Snake
  • Canebrake Rattlesnake
  • Coachwhip
  • Common Garter Snake
  • Common Water Snake
  • Cottonmouth
  • Eastern Worm Snake
  • Louisiana Pine Snake
  • Pine Woods Snake
  • Rough Green Snake
  • Scarlet Snake
  • Texas Coral Snake

Taking a closer look at Louisiana racoon problems

Dugas Pest Control provides humane wildlife trapping service in New Orleans and Baton Rouge Louisiana In pictures, they look cute and innocent, but make no mistake; raccoons can be quite the pests. We often associate them with living in the streets and coming out at night to feast on garbage, but raccoons can also tear up people’s yards and make a home in the attic or underneath decks, leaving behind piles of waste and creating new life.

Raccoons are also difficult to get rid of because they are stubborn animals. If they need to chew a hole through the attic to get back in, they will.

Where Raccoons Are Commonly Found

Some of the most common places that raccoons enjoy nesting are in attics, underneath decks and porches, in chimneys and behind buildings. The signs that a raccoon has been in your space include tipped over trash cans and ripped up lawns. They are very social creatures and are often found in groups. January and February are their mating months, and when the babies are as young as two months old, they begin attending their parents on outings for food. Although raccoons feast on berries, slugs and frogs in the wild, they are an urban nuisance for homeowners.

Keeping Raccoons Out

Fortunately, prevention is the best key to keeping raccoons out of your space. Since trash cans are what they enjoy most, choose cans made from durable materials such as metal or hard plastic. Also make sure the can has a tight-fitting lid. Place screen wiring over chimneys so that raccoons can’t get in, and seal entrances to porches, patios and sheds. Sometimes, raccoons do get in, and homeowners are left dealing with the effects.

For example, raccoons can chew holes in insulation, raid garbage cans and prey in bird nests and feeders. If they get into the home, raccoons will make noise, scratch at the floors and walls and leave behind droppings. They can also carry diseases like roundworm, which is found in the waste, as well as ticks and fleas. Raccoons are strong animals that can damage shingles, vents and boards.

If this happens, contact your local pest control company. At Dugas Pest Control, we use humane measures that include trapping and relocating the raccoons. This type of entrapment is called wildlife exclusion. We make sure we have the whole family so that they can be relocated into wildlife as one unit.  When you work with a pest control company, you can be sure that the right measures are being used to lure, trap and relocate wildlife while giving you back your home.

Wildlife Exclusion: Getting Ready for Cooler Weather

Dugas Pest Control provides humane wildlife trapping service in New Orleans and Baton Rouge Louisiana When the weather starts to get cooler, it’s only natural that people spend more time indoors. Humans aren’t the only beings that seek shelter during the winter months; animals do too.

Cooler Weather Prompts Animals to Seek Shelter

Animals of all breeds look for safe, secure places to retreat to, and sometimes, animals find our own homes to hideout for the winter. Although the cooler weather prompts wildlife to look for shelter, animals can do so at any time. With new housing developments, shopping centers and office buildings springing up all over Baton Rouge, animals have been driven out of their natural habitats, having to find new places to live and raise their young.

If you discover that an animal has found shelter in your home, there are measures that can be taken that are both humane and effective. Read on to find out more.

What is Wildlife Exclusion?

Pest control companies like Dugas Pest Control believe in exclusion because removing the pest is only part of the solution. Exclusion is a humane approach to pest control and involves sealing points of entry on the home so that the animal can no longer get in. Our company can help you identify the animal in your home, recommend a specific plan and prevent other animals from coming into the home. We can help with all types of animals, but the most common we work with include armadillos, raccoons and opossums.

Exclusion Starts with being Proactive

Wildlife exclusion is something that should start before you have a problem. Being proactive is the number one priority. As we head into the winter months, take the time to walk around your home and survey the exterior. Look for such things as loose siding, deteriorated boards along the roof line and screens with holes.

Also be sure to take the proper measures to protect your home from wildlife by doing the following:

–      Keep trash in sealed containers
–      Use wire mesh over chimneys
–      Have trees trimmed so that they do not hang over the home
–      Use small garden fences underneath decks
–      Make sure all cracks and holes are sealed
–      Keep clothing and blankets off the floor and preferably in sealed containers
–      If there are scratch marks, urine or feces anywhere in the home, be sure to contact a pest control specialist immediately

For more assistance getting your home ready for the winter season, contact Dugas Pest Control  today.