Squirrel Control for Khayelitsha homes and businesses

Khayelitsha is huge, and pest pressure changes from one section to the next. In formal brick areas the calls look like any other suburb (cockroaches, mice, fleas), while in the denser informal sections rats and flies are a daily struggle tied to refuse and stormwater.

Khayelitsha: what drives rodents here

Rats burrow into the sand and under floors, and move between homes along fences and walls. Community or street-wide baiting with tamper-resistant stations works best.

There are formal brick homes, RDP houses, newer housing projects and large informal settlements, often right next to each other. Backyard shacks and extensions are very common. Rodents move easily through zinc and timber structures, and cockroaches spread between attached homes and spaza shops.

Khayelitsha is built on Cape Flats sand, with dunes towards False Bay and wetlands in places like the Khayelitsha Wetlands Park. Winter rains can cause flooding in low-lying areas, and drains often struggle. In summer the South-Easter blows sand and refuse around, feeding rats and flies.

Signs to look for

1. Squirrels seen jumping from a tree onto the roof and disappearing under the tiles.
2. Shredded insulation, leaves and twigs found in the roof space.
3. Chewed electrical cables or damaged ceiling boards.
4. Chewed fascia boards, barge boards or roof edges with fresh wood exposed.
5. Scratching and running in the ceiling in the early morning and late afternoon, rather than at night.
6. Dug-up pot plants and bulbs, and nuts buried in garden beds.

A note from the field

When a technician inspects for squirrels, the first thing he looks at is the trees around the house, because the branches show where the squirrels are jumping onto the roof.

Many people think squirrels are harmless, but they chew through cables and can cause real damage in a roof.

Landlords often get the call from tenants about noises in the ceiling. Proofing the roof is a one-time investment that saves repeated call-outs.

What happens when we come out

We do not use poison for squirrels. Our approach is exclusion: we find every entry point and fit one-way exclusion devices so the squirrels can get out but not back in. Where it makes sense, live cage traps are used to remove squirrels from the roof. Once the roof is empty, we close the gaps with steel mesh and repair chewed areas so they cannot get back in. We also advise on trimming branches that give squirrels easy access to the roof.

Want the full step-by-step? See how our squirrel control service works.

Prevention that actually works

• Pick up acorns and fallen fruit regularly if you have big trees close to the house.
• Trim tree branches so they are at least two metres away from the roof.
• Use metal mesh, not plastic, over roof vents and gaps.
• Check fascia boards and roof edges each year for chewed spots and repair them quickly.
• Do not feed squirrels in the garden, however cute they are.

How much will it cost?

The cost depends on how many entry points there are, how high the roof is and how much repair and proofing is needed. A single gap is quick to deal with, but an older roof with many chewed areas takes longer. Trapping and follow-up visits are included in the free quote.

Squirrels in Cape Town breed mainly in late winter and spring, and again in summer, and that is when they look for sheltered nesting places such as roofs. Autumn is also busy, as they gather acorns and nuts from the oak trees.

Frequently asked questions

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