Squirrel infestation can grow pretty nasty in no time. If you’ve bird feeders around your garden, you’ll notice these critters’ many invasions attempts throughout the day.
It seems all fun up to a certain degree until you realize that it’s a serious matter. Each day, your garden birds receive no feed as those darn squirrels continue eating all of it.
And the matter seems even worse when you start thinking; is it a squirrel or a rat? When you look at those droppings around the feeders and throughout your garden.
Squirrels are pretty much the same size as rats, and you must be able to distinguish between squirrel poop and rat poop to go for the right remedies to tackle the infestation accordingly.
Here are some ways to identify squirrel poop.
What Does Squirrel Poop Look Like?
So, what does squirrel poop look like? Squirrel poop very closely resembles rat droppings, and both these pests have their feces dark brown and smooth shapes.
However, squirrels leave larger and more barrel-shaped pellets, whereas rats have smaller oblong-shaped pellets and tapered ends.
These squirrel feces mostly appear under the trees and around those bird feeders. You will also find squirrel pellets inside the crawl spaces of homes and other properties.
Rat Poop vs. Squirrel Droppings
Both animal droppings are different. Squirrel poop is around the size of a stapler pin, and it is 1 cm to 3 cm in length. They look a lot like black-colored seeds. If it’s very dry or brittle, there are chances that this poop is not fresh.
But if it’s mushy and soft, then it’s fresh. So, if you look at it and it has a white-colored tip, it’s a reptile dropping. But if there is no white-colored tip, then it’s not a reptile-droppings, and it might have come from a rat or a squirrel.
As mentioned above, squirrel poop is larger than rat poop, and it has a more barrelled shape. Rat feces have tapered ends with oblong shapes. These are the two most significant differences that these two poops have.
Squirrel droppings vary by their age too. Squirrels tend to leave a lot of poop behind. Their breeding cycles are pretty fast, and their population can grow at rapid paces, just like rats. Identifying squirrel droppings is important, or their population can grow pretty fast.
As soon as you see a little bit of squirrel poop in your attic or crawl space, you need to get to it very fast, or the situation will get out of hand in no time. Most of these squirrels in the attic and crawl spaces will be pregnant females or are about to have a baby.
Is Squirrel Poop Dangerous for Humans or Pets?
So, are squirrel droppings dangerous? Yes, squirrel droppings can present a serious health concern and spread diseases. These include tularemia, salmonellosis, and leptospirosis. Even if you look at the cleaning procedure of these drops, you might find it a bit excessive.
But you must take the necessary steps to protect yourself and your loved ones from any potential infection or contracting disease. Some of these pathogens are inhalable, and you will need full protective gear when you do the clean squirrel poop.
Do Squirrels Poop While They Walk?
It’s more of a misconception than anything else, as squirrels are very secretive when they go to the bathroom. They are so discreet in their pooping endeavors that a myth occurred that squirrels don’t poop at all, but that’s not true either.
Squirrels have few defenses when it comes to protecting themselves from their predators. They have sharp teeth and nails, but they are incomparable to a hawk’s talons, coyotes’ jaws, or even cat claws.
They have to keep their droppings away from their nest so predators can’t reach their young. So you can see why squirrels are so secretive about their feces and why they can’t just poop around while walking.
Where Do Squirrels Poop the Most?
Squirrels are pretty darn fast, and they are pretty shy unless they are pretty attached to someone or are domesticated. They prefer to pee and poop where they don’t live. They will never poop or pee in their burrow or nest.
They mostly poop or pee from a tree or inside a hollow. You will find squirrel poop around the bird feeders or under cars, inside homes or warehouses, or wherever they might find any ditches. They love to pee or poop on any broken wood or any wood.
What Does Squirrel Poop Smell Like?
Most rodent droppings smell pretty bad. To put it simply, squirrel poop smells exactly how it seems, which is terrible. Squirrel feces have a very strong odor, and it is often mixed with urine. Therefore, these droppings will smell like ammonia and sell like rotting feces.
If you find squirrel droppings around the house, you will notice that flies, larvae, and various other parasites will also gather around these droppings, and you have to be extremely careful while handling squirrel poop.
Squirrels are wild animals, and their poop does smell pretty bad. The nasty smell can be around for some time as long as the feces are fresh and wet. When it loses its moisture and becomes dry, the smell fades down.
Final Word
Squirrel poop looks and smells nasty, and it does contain harmful pathogens that can cause diseases. It is slightly larger than rat poop and is more barrel-shaped.
When squirrels poop in or around your house, you need to act very fast, or these critters will take over in no time as they have quick multiplication and growth rates. Therefore, it is critical for effective squirrel removal.