Animal Roof Damage: What to Do If You Have Animals in the Roof

There’s no feeling quite like it for a homeowner. The thought that you might have a wild animal in the roof of your home. You might hear scratching sounds, noise at night, or even see the critter through the hole they created in your roof.

A variety of different types of animals, including raccoons, squirrels, rats and mice can enter attics through surprisingly small holes that are already there, or they can chew their way in.

In any case, from the moment you even suspect there’s an animal in your attic or roof, you want to find out for sure, get rid of it as soon as possible, and get your roof repaired before any other animals get in or you suffer any water damage.

Steps to Take If You Have Animals in Your Roof

The first thing you need to do before anything else is call your local municipality’s animal control.

While your first reaction to your animal problem might be to call a roofing contractor, they won’t be able to do anything until an animal control or wildlife removal service gets rid of the animal(s) for you. 

The reason for that is, while you may want to get your roof repaired before any other damage is done to your home, fixing the hole before the animal is removed can trap them inside your roof. If that happens, the animal will either create a new hole to escape (which might be into the living area of your home!), or they may die before they get out. You don’t want either of those things to happen.

Your municipality might have an animal control service (in York Region, you can call 1-877-979-7297), or you might need to call an independent service. In any case, you should call as soon as you can. 

If they confirm that an animal is in your attic, animal control will probably install a one-way trap, which lets the animal get out of the roof, but doesn’t let them get back in.

When to Call Your Roofing Company

Once animal control confirms that they have removed the animal, you should call your roofing company to inspect your roof and do any repairs. Animal Control is trained to get animals out of your home, but they are not trained to do proper roofing repairs. Their temporary repairs can cause long-term roof damage that will add to your roofing repair costs later on.

Trained roofers know to look for all sorts of damage that animals can cause, and make proper repairs to prevent future infestations and protect your home. Repairs can include replacing chewed exhaust vents with metal vents, replacing damaged shingles, and installing a metal fascia to cover exposed wood.

To find out about a different type of roofing damage, check out our article “How to Spot Wind Damage to Roofs”.