Bats can be found in Chattanooga attics anytime of the year. During the fall they are finding a place to hibernate. Any place in Hamilton County that remains about 45° F will be fine for the colony to hibernate. This is often in the attic of a home. Big Brown Bats are more common to find in buildings but the Little Brown bats can also be found in homes or buildings. In the spring they look for a place for a nesting colony. Many states prohibit eviction during the maternity season. This is from May to early August. The best time for eviction is late August through September.
Bat removal if you have a single one who just wandered in by accident can sometimes be handled by a homeowner. Most often this happens with the young who may just be learning to fly and are exploring their neighborhood. The best way to handle this situation is to let them find the exit. If you can isolated the bat to a single room then you can open all the windows and keep the door to the rest of the house closed. Swatting or chasing them will cause erratic behavior as a result of panic. Usually in about 15 minutes they will find an opening and exit.
However, if you discover more than one or find evidence of a colony in your attic, please consider contacting an expert in bat removal. Some Chattanooga homeowners will try to use chemical repellents. This is rarely effective. Even if you get them to leave using a repellent the odor eventually fades and they will return. Also in many states using chemical repellents or poisons on them is illegal. They should be removed using techniques that result in live exclusion.
The building should be completely inspected to find any possible entry points as well as ensuring there are no young present. Evicting the adults leaving babies to die is not a desirable outcome. This will result in unpleasant odor and bug infestation issues. Leaving the primary entry/exit points open, any other openings can be sealed before the eviction to limit the possibility of reentry. Pest removal professionals will be able to determine which openings are the primary entry/exit points. Once they are out then you can permanently seal the opening. After the exclusion, the cleaning and decontamination should be done in a safe and thorough manner.
Little Brown and Big Brown Bats are the most common found in homes in the U.S. They eat a large amount of insects, one bat can eat nearly 3,000 insects each night. This makes them vital to our ecosystem. They also can carry rabies and many people believe that they all have rabies. This is not true, less 1% of them have rabies. While rabies is not a high risk the droppings (guano) and urine can result in odors issues or even bug infestations.
