Why Wildlife Companies Fail at Bat Control
Most wildlife removal companies mean well.
Many are good at dealing with raccoons, squirrels, skunks, birds, mice, and other common wildlife problems. The issue is not usually that they are trying to do a bad job. The issue is that bat control is a very specialized type of work, and most general wildlife companies simply do not have enough bat-specific experience to understand how bats use buildings.
They also often lack the construction knowledge needed to bat-proof a house properly. Bat control requires understanding building materials, rooflines, soffits, fascia, flashing, siding, brickwork, vents, and how different parts of a house fit together.
It also requires knowing that the caulking or sealant suitable for one part of the house may be completely wrong for another. What works on a roof may not be right for siding, brick, fascia, soffits, or flashing. In many cases, proper bat-proofing also requires knowing when custom flashing, screening, or other protective work needs to be made on site.
That is why so many homeowners call us after another company has already been paid to “fix” the problem.
The bats were not excluded properly. The house was not bat-proofed properly. And the real entry points were often never found.
Bat Control Is Not General Wildlife Removal
Most wildlife work is based on finding an obvious hole, installing a trap or one-way door, removing the animal, and repairing the damage.
That approach does not work well with bats.
Bats do not use houses the same way raccoons or squirrels do. They do not usually chew a large, obvious hole through the roof. They do not need a big opening. They can enter through narrow gaps around soffits, fascia, chimneys, vents, siding, flashing, roof intersections, brickwork, and roof edges.
Many of these openings are small, high, hidden, or easy to dismiss as harmless construction gaps.
To a general wildlife company, the house may look sealed.
To a bat specialist, the same house may have dozens or even hundreds of possible bat access points.
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Photo of a small roofline, soffit, fascia, chimney, or siding gap that would not look serious to most homeowners.
Suggested image caption:
Bats do not need a large hole. Many bat entry points are small construction gaps that are easy to overlook.
The Most Common Mistake: Treating the Bat Problem Like One Hole
One of the biggest reasons wildlife companies fail at bat control is that they treat the job as if the entire problem is one entry point.
They may find one obvious opening, install an excluder, seal a few nearby gaps, and leave.
That does not mean the house is bat-proofed.
Bat control is never about one hole. All houses have multiple vulnerable areas. Some are active entry points. Some are secondary entry points. Others may become future entry points once bats are excluded from the main opening.
If the rest of the structure is not inspected and protected properly, the bats will simply shift to another gap.
This is why homeowners often hear, “The work we did is fine, but now the bats are using another area.”
That is not a solved bat problem. That is an incomplete bat-proofing job.
What Wildlife Companies Often Miss
Bats are experts at using the hidden parts of a house.
They may enter at the roofline, then move into an attic, wall cavity, chimney chase, soffit space, basement ceiling, furnace room, or another hidden void. From there, they may eventually appear inside a bedroom, bathroom, basement, kitchen, or living room.
A company that only looks at the outside of the house and installs one excluder may completely miss how the bats are actually using the structure.
This is especially important when bats are showing up inside the living space. Removing the bat from the room does not explain how it got there. The real issue is the pathway between the outside entry point, the hidden structure, and the finished living area.
Without understanding that pathway, the same problem can happen again.
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Common Things Missed During Failed Bat Jobs
Suggested photo grid captions:
- Missed soffit gap
- Unsealed chimney opening
- Poor caulking around roofline
- Spray foam failure
- Loose fascia bat entry point
- Cheap excluder installed incorrectly
- Hidden gap behind shingles
- Bat entry point at roof intersection
Bats Do Not Need Obvious Damage to Get Inside
Homeowners often assume there must be a large hole somewhere.
There usually is not.
Bats often enter through normal construction gaps that were never meant to keep out bats. Most houses were built to keep out rain, wind, and snow — not small, persistent animals capable of using narrow spaces around rooflines and trim.
Common bat entry areas include:
- Gaps behind fascia boards
- Soffit and brick intersections
- Chimney gaps
- Loose flashing
- Roof intersections
- Gable vents
- Siding gaps
- Fireplace chase areas
- Openings under shingles
- Gaps around trim, vents, and roof edges
A general wildlife company may overlook these areas because they do not look like damage.
But to bats, these gaps can be perfect entry points.
[See Common Bat Entry Points]
Cheap Excluders Are Not Bat-Proofing
Another common problem is the use of cheap, temporary, or poorly installed excluders.
An excluder is only one part of the process. It allows bats to leave without getting back through that specific opening. But the excluder itself does not bat-proof the house.
If the rest of the structure remains open, bats may simply use another gap.
A proper bat job requires:
- A full inspection of the structure.
- Identification of active and potential bat entry points.
- Properly installed humane excluders where needed.
- Time for the bats to leave safely.
- Permanent bat-proofing of the vulnerable areas.
Skipping any of these steps can cause the problem to continue.
The Wrong Materials Often Fail
Bat-proofing also depends on using the right materials in the right places.
Caulking a few gaps is not the same as bat-proofing a house.
We often see failed jobs where companies used the wrong caulk, used too little material, missed key areas, relied on spray foam, installed flimsy mesh, or sealed only the easiest gaps they could reach.
Those repairs may look good for a short time, but they often fail because they were never designed as a proper bat-proofing system.
Bats are persistent. Weather is hard on exterior materials. Houses move. Caulking shrinks. Wood shifts. Flashing loosens. Soffits and fascia change over time.
If the materials and methods are wrong, the bats eventually find their way back in.
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Close-up of failed caulking, foam, mesh, or a gap that reopened.
Suggested image caption:
Temporary patching is not the same as proper bat-proofing.
Done Wrong / Done Right: What Failed Bat Control Looks Like
One of the best ways to understand why general wildlife companies often fail at bat control is to compare poor bat work with proper bat-proofing.
Many failed jobs look acceptable from the ground. A homeowner may see some caulking, mesh, foam, or an excluder and assume the house has been fixed. But when you look closely, the work often does not address how bats actually use the structure.
Done Wrong
Poor bat control often includes things like:
- One excluder installed over one obvious hole
- Spray foam pushed into gaps
- Thin or poorly attached mesh
- Caulking that is too narrow or already shrinking
- Missed gaps around soffits, fascia, chimneys, or roof edges
- Openings sealed without confirming whether bats are still inside
- Work focused only on the easiest area to reach
- No real inspection of the whole structure
This type of work may look like something was done, but it does not mean the house has been bat-proofed.
Photo layout suggestion:
Use a two-column layout.
Left image: Failed wildlife company repair
Caption: Done Wrong: A temporary patch or missed entry point that did not solve the bat problem.
Right image: Proper bat-proofing repair
Caption: Done Right: The vulnerable area is properly sealed, screened, flashed, or protected so bats cannot continue using it.
Done Right
Proper bat control is different.
A proper bat-proofing job looks at the whole structure, not just one obvious opening. The active entry points must be identified, the bats must be excluded safely, and the vulnerable areas must be protected with materials and methods that can hold up over time.
Done right, bat control should include:
- A full exterior inspection
- Identification of active and potential bat entry points
- Humane exclusion where needed
- Proper sealing, screening, flashing, or bat-proofing
- Materials suitable for long-term outdoor exposure
- Attention to roof edges, soffits, fascia, chimneys, vents, siding, flashing, and roof intersections
- A finished job that is meant to keep bats out, not just remove them temporarily
The difference is not cosmetic.
The difference is whether the bat problem is actually fixed.
Many Companies Do Not Understand Big Brown Bats
In London and much of Ontario, most residential bat problems involve big brown bats.
Big brown bats are highly adapted to living in buildings. They can use attics, walls, soffit areas, chimney chases, basements, and other protected spaces. They may also move back and forth among several houses in the same neighbourhood.
This is something many general wildlife companies do not understand.
With big brown bats, your home may be part of an ecosystem of houses being used by the bats. Bats from nearby homes may scout and explore your structure. A bat found inside does not always mean there are hundreds of bats in your attic, but it does mean local bats are using the house.
That is why the structure needs to be assessed properly.
Sealing Bats Inside Can Make the Problem Worse
One of the worst mistakes a company can make is sealing holes without knowing whether bats are still inside.
If bats are trapped inside the structure, they may move deeper into the home. They may start appearing in bedrooms, bathrooms, basements, or living rooms. Some may die inside walls, ceilings, ductwork, or attic spaces.
This can create odour, contamination, and more indoor bat problems.
Bat exclusion must be done carefully and in the correct order. The goal is to let the bats leave safely before the structure is permanently sealed.
Workmanship Warranties Often Do Not Mean the Problem Is Fixed
Wildlife companies offer what they call a workmanship warranty.
That may sound reassuring, but it only means they are guaranteeing the specific work they performed. It also means they are not guaranteeing that the bat problem is fixed.
When the bats continue appearing, the company will say the original work held up, but more sealing is now required.
That leaves the homeowner paying again for a problem that should have been fixed properly the first time.
A true bat-proofing job should be based on solving the bat problem, not just defending the small amount of work that was done.
Why Homeowners End Up Paying Twice
Many homeowners try a general wildlife company first because they assume all animal removal companies do the same kind of work.
Unfortunately, bat control is specialized.
When the first company misses entry points, uses the wrong materials, installs a poor excluder, or fails to inspect the whole structure, the homeowner often ends up paying more than twice: once for the failed work, once to have the failed work removed, and once again to have the problem fixed properly.
In many cases the more “bat-proofing work” they did, the harder the job is going to be.
This is why choosing a bat specialist from the start is always the less expensive option.
What Proper Bat Control Should Include
A proper bat control job should include more than a quick look and a single excluder.
You need someone that knows how to…
- Make a detailed inspection of the exterior structure
- Identify all active bat entry points
- Identify allsecondary entry points
- Figure out what species and roughly how bats may be using the attic, walls, chimney, soffits, or basement areas
- Saferly and properly set humane bat excluders
- Permanently bat-proofing the house
- Use the right materials and methods suitable for long-term exterior exposure
- Give a lifetime warranty that they have fixed the problem
The goal is not just to remove bats.
The goal is to stop them from getting back in. Permanently.
Why Bat Control Specialists Are Different
At Bat Control Specialists, bat work is not an add-on service.
It is what we do.
We inspect houses with bats in mind. We look at the structure the way bats use it. We understand that the visible bat is often only the symptom. The real problem is the hidden access, movement, and roosting areas inside the building.
We do not treat bat control like a raccoon or squirrel job. We do not rely on one obvious hole, one cheap excluder, or a few beads of caulk.
We focus on proper exclusion, structural bat-proofing, and long-term prevention.
Before and After: When a Failed Wildlife Job Has to Be Repaired
Many homeowners call us after they have already paid another company to fix the bat problem.
In those cases, the before photos are often the most important part of the story. They show what was missed, what was done incorrectly, and why the bats were still able to use the house.
The after photos show what proper bat-proofing looks like once the structure has been inspected and the vulnerable areas have been addressed correctly.
Before
The before photos may show:
- Missed bat entry points
- Poor caulking
- Spray foam failure
- Cheap mesh or loose screening
- Excluders installed in the wrong place
- Gaps around chimneys, soffits, fascia, vents, siding, or roof edges
- Areas the previous company never addressed
These photos help homeowners understand why the first job failed.
After
The after photos should show the corrected work.
This may include:
- Properly sealed soffit and fascia gaps
- Screened or protected vents
- Bat-proofed chimney areas
- Protected roof intersections
- Correctly installed exclusion work
- Flashing, screening, or sealing that actually protects the structure
- Vulnerable areas that were missed during the first job
The goal of the after photo is not just to show that the area looks cleaner.
The goal is to show that the structure has been properly bat-proofed.
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Use a repeating Before / After image block.
Before image caption:
Before: Failed wildlife company repair. The bats were still able to use the structure.
After image caption:
After: Proper bat-proofing completed by Bat Control Specialists.
[Read a Failed Wildlife Company Case Study]
If Another Company Failed, You Are Not Alone
If you already paid a wildlife company and still have bats, that does not mean your house is impossible to fix.
It means you hired the wrong person.
Entry points have been missed. The structure was not fully inspected. The bats may have shifted to another opening. The company did not understand know what they were doing.
Again, this does not necessarily mean the company was dishonest or trying to do poor work. Most wildlife companies mean well. They are simply not bat specialists, and bat control is the easiest wildlife job to get wrong if you are not specially trained and do it every day.
A failed wildlife job does not mean the bats cannot be stopped. It means you need the right person to do the job properly.
Need the Bat Problem Fixed Properly?
If bats are still getting into your attic, walls, basement, bedroom, or living space after another company has already tried to fix the problem, it is time for a bat specialist.
Bat Control Specialists can determine how bats are entering, how they are using the structure, and what needs to be bat-proofed so the problem does not keep coming back.