Regulations and Restrictions for Bat Removal

When it comes to bat removal in Richmond Virginia, the state has a few restrictions and regulations that our teams of animal removal experts strictly adhere to. For all species of bats, it is illegal in the state of Virginia to transfer, or move them anywhere other than on the property that they were caught on. It is also illegal to poison any animal on your property other than mice and rats.

In Virginia there are three species of bats that are federally endangered: Gray Bat, Indiana Bat, and the Virginia-Bat-Eared Bat. These three types of bats are protected under the Endangered Species Act which means that it is a federal offense to cause any harm, hunt, kill, capture them, or attempt to engage in any of these criminal acts.

Identifying the bat species that has invaded your Richmond VA home can be a difficult task but with these helpful guidelines it may assist you in determining whether you have one of the three endangered species of bats in Virginia living on your property. Gray Bats usually have unicolored dark gray fur on their back, but following their molt in the month of July or August their fur turns to a shade of chestnut brown. The Indiana Bat is small in size and only weighs about a quarter of an ounce with dark-brown to black fur. The Virginia-Big-Eared Bat is characterized by their large ears that measure more than one inch long with an overall body length of three and a half to four inches long. This endangered bat also has two large lumps on its muzzle and has pale to dark brown fur on their back with a light brown underbelly.

Here at Richmond Animal Removal Services all of our animal removal experts are trained and skilled in identifying the species of bats that are oosting in the attic of your home or other places on your property. One of our bat removal professionals will inspect your property and determine whether we are legally allowed to move forward with the bat removal process. If the species of bat that is living in your home is not endangered it may be removed if deemed as being a nuisance. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) defines a nuisance as a bat that has or is about to cause damage to your property, crops, or livestock or when they constitute a health hazard.

Some other restrictions that Virginia enforces include the ban on the removal and exclusions of bats in a maternity colony throughout the period months of May 15 – August 31, unless a human health concern is in question. Tree removal, prescribed fires, or other land management actions are restricted through the months of September 1-April 30. If you wish to remove a tree from your property during this time frame you must first be approved and verify that there are no known bat roosts that exist in or around the tree.

How Do We Safely and Legally Remove Non-Endangered Bats?

Our bat removal experts are trained and certified through the National Wildlife Control Operators Association (NWCOA) and Wildlife Control Training (WCT) Group to ensure that we safely, legally, and humanely exclude bats from your Virginia home or property.

Bat Inspection

The first thing that we do is perform a full inspection of your home and property to identify any current and potential bat entry points, roosts, rabies risk, contamination from bat guano (feces) and urine, and structural defects prior to bat eviction and exclusion.

Bat Exclusion

After we create an inspection report and proposal our team can then move forward with performing bat removal and exclusion on your property in Virginia. All potential bat entry points that are listed in the proposal will be made uninhabitable or impenetrable by bats through the use of exclusion material such as caulk, adhesives, sealants, foam, wire mesh, coil stock, backer rod, chimney stack, and other bat proof materials.

Bat Removal

Our team of knowledgeable bat removal experts will evict bats from the premises using the techniques and devices that are best suited for the location, time of year, bat species present, or potential exposure to rabies. Some of the devices that we use include bat tubes, bat cones, plastic netting and sheets, mesh, chutes, or bat traps to safely and humanely remove the bats from your home or other structure.

Bat Cleanup

Large accumulations of bat guano or bat feces must be professionally cleaned since droppings can harbor diseases such as histoplasmosis.

If you have any questions or concerns about bats that have moved onto your property, our team of animal removal experts are dedicated to answering any of your questions and are committed to providing you with thorough and accurate information about your new inhabitant. Call us today to come up with the best plan of action when it comes to removing bats in your home, chimney, attic, barn, business or other property.

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