A real wildlife inspection covers the whole house, outside and in, not just the spot where you heard the noise. Outside, that means the roofline, soffits and fascia, roof returns, vents, chimney, pipe and air conditioning openings, garage door corners, the foundation and anything under a deck or slab. Inside, it means the attic: tracks, droppings, nesting, chewed wiring and the paths animals use. At the end you should know what animal it is, where it gets in and what it will take to stop it. Michael Gerbino of Cypress Critters & Pests does every inspection himself. Call 713-775-8799.
What should be checked outside the house?
Most animals get in high, so a good inspection spends real time on the roof and the roofline. Here is what Michael looks at and why:
| Area | What he looks for | Animals it usually points to |
|---|---|---|
| Roof returns, where two rooflines meet | Gaps behind the fascia, chewed or pushed-in corners | Raccoons, squirrels, roof rats |
| Soffits and fascia | Torn or sagging panels, round chewed holes, rotten wood | Raccoons, squirrels |
| Gable and attic vents | Torn screens, bent covers, rub marks around the edges | Raccoons, squirrels, rats, birds |
| Chimney | A missing or damaged cap | Raccoons, birds, bats |
| Pipes and AC lines through the roof and walls | Open gaps around the line | Rats and mice |
| Garage door corners | Worn or chewed seals | Rats and mice |
| Foundation, decks, sheds and skirting | Fresh dirt, dug holes, gaps at the edge | Opossums, skunks, snakes |
| Trees and fences | Limbs on the roof, worn paths along the fence top | Squirrels, raccoons, roof rats |
One opening is rarely the whole story. A raccoon may use one hole while rats use three small ones on the other side of the house.
What should be checked inside the attic?
The attic tells you what lives there and how long it has been there. Michael looks for droppings and their size, flattened or tunneled insulation, nesting material, tracks in the dust, chewed wiring, rub marks along the rafters and light coming in where it should not. He also follows the paths back to the openings, so the outside and inside findings match. If there are signs of young, that changes the plan and the timing.
What should you get at the end of an inspection?
You should walk away with straight answers, not a vague sense that something is up there:
- What animal it is, or the short list if the signs point to more than one.
- Every entry point he found, and which ones are active.
- Whether there are young, and what that means for timing.
- The plan: how the animals come out alive, what gets sealed and with what, and what needs repair or clean-up.
- How the quote is figured. The number and height of the openings, the animal, any young and the repair work are what shape it.
That last piece is the heart of animal exclusion: removing the animal is only half the job, and the inspection is what finds the other half, the openings that let the next one in. Ready to have the house looked at? Call Michael at 713-775-8799.
Why does timing matter for bats and baby animals?
Two things can make a good plan go wrong if the timing is off. The first is young animals. In spring and early summer, raccoons and squirrels often have young in the attic. Sealing a mother out means she tears a new hole to get back, and young left behind die in the walls.
The second is bats. Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPWD) says bats may be removed from a building occupied by people, and it discourages excluding bats from buildings from May 1 to August 15, when young bats cannot fly and may be trapped inside. Michael never traps bats. He excludes them with one-way devices that let them leave and not return, and he does not do bat exclusion between May 1 and August 15. An inspection in summer that finds bats ends with a plan for the right time of year.
What are signs of a poor inspection?
- Nobody goes on the roof or into the attic.
- A trap gets set before anyone has found the openings.
- Nobody asks what you have been hearing and when.
- You cannot get a clear answer on where the animal is getting in.
- The plan does not mention sealing at all.
When to call
Call for an inspection when you hear scratching or running overhead, find droppings or chewed wiring, see torn soffits or bent vents, or trapped an animal before and the noise came back. The wild animal control services page lists every animal Michael handles. In Cypress, where newer subdivisions sit right next to woods and the creek corridors, animal exclusion in Cypress covers what he usually finds. Call or text 713-775-8799.
Questions people ask about wildlife inspections
Does a wildlife inspection include going up into the attic?
It should. The attic shows what animal is living there, how many, whether there are young, and what damage has been done to insulation and wiring. It also shows the paths back to the openings. An inspection that skips the attic is guessing. Michael goes into the attic on every inspection and matches what he finds there to the openings outside.
Why does the inspector need to get on my roof?
Because that is where most animals get in. Roof returns, soffit gaps, vents and the chimney are hard to judge from the ground, and a small gap behind the fascia can be the whole problem. Walking the roofline is how every opening gets found, so the sealing plan covers all of them instead of just the one you can see.
Can bats be sealed out of my attic in the summer?
Not between May 1 and August 15. Texas Parks and Wildlife discourages excluding bats from buildings in that window because young bats cannot fly yet and can be trapped inside. Michael never traps bats. He excludes them with one-way devices outside that window, and a summer inspection ends with a plan for the right time.
What should I do before Michael comes to inspect?
Make sure the attic access is clear, keep pets inside, and jot down what you have heard and when: day or night, which room, scratching or running or thumping. Note any holes, droppings or damage you have seen. Those details help Michael narrow down the animal and the openings before he even gets on the ladder.
