Critter Control of Knoxville

Wildlife Control near You
Call to Schedule a Free Inspection

(865) 351-4415

Known as "The Valley," Knoxville, Tennessee, is nestled between the Cumberland Plateau and the Great Smoky Mountains. This valley was carved out of the mountains by the running waters of the French Broad River and the Holston River, which converge to form the Tennessee River. Knoxville also has 92 parks within city limits. This combination of water, forested mountains, and parks is a perfect environment for wild animals, including those who pose a nuisance to residents, business owners, and tourists.

In addition to its landscape, Knoxville has a rich cultural life with museums, restaurants, and clubs. More than 12 million visitors descend on the area annually to enjoy the 500 thousand acres of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, the most visited national park in the country. As people encroach upon the habits of the region’s wild animals, these creatures travel to seek shelter, food, and water from Knoxville’s residential and commercial neighborhoods.

Critter Control Wildlife Removal Process

Critter Control is here for you every step of the way in the wildlife removal process. From inspection to removal—and even exclusion and repair—we have the services you need to get rid of raccoons, rodents, and other nuisances fast. First, we identify the animal on the property, then use humane methods to remove the animal and secure weak points where more could enter. If damage has been done, we can make those repairs for a complete restoration. Contact a Critter Control office near you today.
STEP 1

Wildlife Inspection

During the inspection we try to ascertain how many animals there are, where they are located, and how they got in. Based on what you have seen, heard and smelled, we start the inspection where you have noticed signs of animal activity. Evidence of animals inside your home include nests, dens, feces, and animal tracks. We investigate the exterior of your home looking for possible entry points, any evidence of animal damage, tracks, fur, animal waste, or rub marks.
STEP 2

Removal

We use several methods to humanely remove the animal from your home. Depending on the species, the number of animals, and the condition of your property, we develop a custom wildlife removal plan. Humane wildlife removal strategies include animal traps, one-way doors, and repellents. Once we guarantee all animals are gone, we implement exclusion techniques. Exclusion techniques provide a safe, long-term solution to nuisance wildlife in your home. We create barriers to prevent animals from getting to resources. We only apply exclusions once we are sure all animals are gone from your home.
STEP 3

Exclusion and Repair

Wildlife will damage your home. Exclusion techniques repair any damage the animal causes getting into your home. Inside your home, animals build nests and dens out of readily available material. They will create runs through the insulation. Rodents will gnaw on anything including electrical wires and pipes. Animals can also spread diseases. We apply sanitation agents to clean up feces and urine. Mammals can host pests like fleas, ticks, and mites. Ectoparasite treatments exterminate those pests so you don’t become their next host.

Raccoon Removal

Raccoons prefer to live in moist woodlands, building their dens high up in trees to avoid predators. When their habitat shrinks or becomes too crowded with hikers and tourists, they turn to people’s attics and chimneys as well as to commercial buildings, barns, and sheds for shelter as they’ve come to know that where there are people, there is a reliable source of food and water.

Although raccoons look cute, they are quite mischievous. Active at night, they can become quite large and can create significant damage living in your attic. Raccoons breed in winter and give birth in the spring. While in your home, they’ll tear insulation to build their den, gnaw on wood and wires, and create unsanitary conditions with their urine and feces.

Because they can become aggressive and can carry rabies, a wildlife professional is needed to get rid of raccoons. Critter Control uses the humane process of live-capturing raccoons to eradicate them.

Inspection

Inspection

During the inspection, we determine the severity of the raccoon infestation. We look for physical evidence like footprints in or around the home, stains from raccoon feces and urine. On the exterior of the house, we look for damage like scratches on boards, broken vents and screens, ripped apart shingles, destroyed soffits, and every possible entry point.

Raccoon Trapping

Raccoon Trapping

Live trapping is one of the most efficient ways to get rid of a raccoon. Depending on the situation, a one-way door or excluder valve can be installed. An excluder valve works by allowing the raccoon to leave but blocks its reentry. The choice of device is largely dependent on the season and location of the raccoons on your property. Direct capture is not commonly used because raccoons are a rabies vector species. If we must trap, we place traps strategically to safely catch the raccoons and we check traps frequently, based on state laws.
Repairs

Repairs

We provide a wide range of repair and restoration services. We can repair raccoon damage like broken screens on vents and chimneys and broken boards on decks and porches. It is essential to apply cleaning agents and ectoparasite treatments on areas inhabited by raccoons.

Bat Removal

There are 16 species of bats in Tennessee. Luckily they all feed exclusively on insects which makes them beneficial creatures of the night skies. Signs of a bat infestation include their guano which can cause health issues, smudge marks along walls and siding where they fly in and out, and squeaking inside your walls.

Bats are federally protected animals, and some of them are on the endangered list. Bat exterminators are illegal. You cannot kill them. There are both federal and state regulations that need to be followed when getting rid of bats. Bats have their pups in spring. These pups are not able to fend for themselves until fall, making fall the time of year to call us in to install a bat valve or one-way door through which they can fly out but cannot return.

Inspection

Inspection

We perform a full interior and exterior inspection and search for signs such as rub marks, guano, a strong scent of ammonia, and small openings. The most common sign is the accumulation of guano (feces).

Bat Removal

Bat Removal

The most effective and humane way to remove bats is by utilizing a bat valve in conjunction with a full home exclusion. A bat valve allows for bats to exit your home but not re-enter. We follow all local ordinances for humane bat removal. We will never abandon flightless pups in your attic.
Repairs

Repairs

After removing the bat valves, we seal the entrance hole(s) so bats can no longer enter your home. If there is substantial guano in your attic, you should consider taking advantage of our attic remediation services to remove the soiled insulation and replace it.

Squirrel Removal

Eastern Tennesse, including Knoxville, is home to five species of squirrels: eastern gray squirrel, eastern fox squirrel, American red squirrel, northern flying squirrel, and southern flying squirrel. While squirrels are fun to watch when scurrying around outside, they are no fun to find in your attic, where they will damage insulation, gnaw on wood and electrical wires and bring in lots of nuts and seeds.

Squirrels are carriers of ticks, mange mites, fleas, and internal parasites. If you suspect you have a squirrel in your home, don’t attempt to remove it yourself. Squirrels may bite or attack if aggravated, especially if they have young present.

Inspection

Inspection

Wildlife specialists look for signs such as chewing on, in, or around your home, small openings leading to the attic or the crawl space, droppings, and debris like nuts or nesting material. Beams, wires, pipes, and insulation may all show signs of damage from squirrels.

Squirrel Trapping

Squirrel Trapping

Live trapping or one-way doors are the most effective and humane ways to get rid of squirrels. One-way doors should never be used during birthing seasons (Spring & Fall), so our specialists will decide which is the best tool for the job. If we have to trap, we place traps strategically to safely catch the squirrels and check those according to state laws.
Repairs

Repairs

We can restore your home or office by squirrel proofing all entry points after we have removed the offenders. We can also clean-up the nesting sites and remove any debris, food, feces and soiled insulation. 
Get them out.
Keep them out.®
Call Today For A FREE Inspection
Click to call

Rodent Removal

Because the Knoxville region has proximity to several rivers and forested land, there are many bird species living here. Many are native to the area, but some are migrating through. These birds sometimes roost on the edges of homes and commercial buildings and build nests in chimneys, eaves, and vents.

The most common birds that become nuisances are starlings, sparrows, woodpeckers, and pigeons. These birds can be noisy, mess up home exteriors with feces and urine, and will peck in wood siding looking for insects. Excluding birds is the only way to get rid of them. This involves sealing eaves and installing roof barriers so birds cannot land and build their nests.

Rodent Removal

Rodents such as rats and mice are a perennial problem for homeowners and businesses throughout the world, including Knoxville. Rats and mice have been living amongst humans for over 15,000 years, enjoying free food, water, and shelter in people’s homes.

Mouse removal and rat removal needs to take place as soon as you see their telltale signs, such as feces on countertops and in the pantry, scurrying noises at night in your walls, and oils smudge marks along walls and baseboards. They will not only create significant home damage from their gnawing and tunnel building, but they’ll also contaminate food and pose a health risk. Rodents are also prolific breeders and can have up to six litters per year, so what can seem like a few rats or house mice can turn into hundreds before too long. Critter Control creates a custom plan for eradicating rodents based on their quantity and location.

Inspection

Inspection

During a rodent inspection, we thoroughly inspect your attic and provide a complete exterior home inspection. The most common signs of rodent activity are gnaw marks, feces, rub marks, nesting material, runs in insulation material, and small entry points.

Rodent Trapping

Rodent Trapping

A Critter Control wildlife specialist will create a strategic trapping plan to remove the rodents found in your home. Critter Control specialists may use snap traps and live traps to capture and remove mice and rats. Rodent trapping can usually takes between five to fourteen days. 
Repairs

Repairs

The best way to reduce the possibility of letting unwanted rodents into homes is to seal possible entrances. Exclusion methods include caulking cracks in foundations, capping chimneys, and installing mesh covers over vents and crawl space entrances. We also strongly recommend a maintenance service. Rodents have front teeth that continuously grow, which means they can gnaw a new way back into your home.

Opossum Control

Opossums will build a den almost anywhere that is dry, sheltered, and safe from predators. In a residential neighborhood, that could mean your shed, crawlspace, or underneath your porch. They are attracted to our yards because of the lack of predators and an abundance of food from unsealed garbage cans, pet food left outside, or fruit that has fallen from trees.

Opossums don’t cause much damage, and because they have a low body temperature, they do not carry rabies. But they do harbor parasites such as ticks and fleas as well as diseases like leptospirosis and tuberculosis.

Skunk Control

Skunks are a common pest in Knoxivlle and the surrounding Appalchians. These animals are known for foraging for food in trash bins and pet food bowls. They're also profound and efficient diggers, and can mutilate an entire yard in a single night searching for grubs. They're distinctive black and white fur, and their pungent odor that can linger for days, are unmistakeable. If you happen to cross paths with a skunk, do not try to scare it away. Please also remember that skunks can carry rabies; therefore, it’s best to let a professional handle removal for you.
Inspection

Inspection

In addition to noting any pungent odors that signal the presence of a skunk, we will inspect the condition of your landscaping, as skunks are known for tearing-up lawns and shredding grass while hunting for grubs and insects. We will also inspect the perimeter of your building's foundations and under decks, to locate burrows.
 

Trapping and Removal

Trapping and Removal

Never try to remove a skunk from your property yourself. Getting sprayed is a very unpleasant experience. Furthermore, these animals may carry diseases that can spread to humans and pets, such as rabies. Our specialists will use live traps to capture and remove skunks for you, or they'll use a one-way exclusion device to evict skunks from their harborage areas. The most effective ways to control a skunk problem is exclusion and habitat modification.
Skunk Control

Skunk Control

The most effective ways to control a skunk problem is exclusion and habitat modification. Methods like sealing foundation gaps, replacing and screening broken foundation vents and installing hardware cloth (rat walls) around unprotected sheds and decks are the most effective and permanent ways to keep skunks out.
We recommend keeping pet food inside and securing any trash bins.
Get them out.
Keep them out.®
Call Today For A FREE Inspection
Click to call

The Critter Control Difference

Guaranteed Work Your satisfaction is always guaranteed. Critter Control® takes great pride in providing quality workmanship resulting in customer satisfaction.
Trained Specialists Animal removal is a highly sophisticated job. As such, we vet and train our team members to ensure they have the knowledge and skill to remove any pest from your building. Our wildlife experts utilize advanced removal and exclusion techniques and damage repair.
Residential and Commerical Invading nuisance wildlife can wreak havoc on property. If left unattended wildlife and pests can cause costly property damage. Whether a residential property, apartment buildings, retail stores, office buildings, industrial plants, medical facilities, or warehouses, our trained professionals can handle any wildlife removal problem.
Contact Form