Eastern Grey Squirrels breed twice a year, December to February and May to June. The first litter is born in February to March, the second in June to July. There are normally two to six young in each litter, but this number can be as high as 8. The gestation period is about 44 days. The young are weaned at 7 weeks and leave the nest after 10 weeks.

Eastern Grey Squirrels can start breeding as early as 5 and a half months old, but usually breed for the first time at a year old. It can live to be 20 years old in captivity, but in the wild it usually only lives to around 12 years old.

Grey Squirrels will typically enter a home through what is known as a home "builders gap" or "construction gap".  This happens more so during the cooler months as a way to survive and avoid the cold. They find this "gap", (found along the roof line where the decking board and fascia board should meet, just under the first row of shingles) usually by the heat coming out from under the shingles while they forge for food and water in your gutters. 

Once in a home, the Squirrels (just like rats) will poop and urinate.  That urination is a "marker" and also let's off a pheromone that's meant to attract a mate.  Your home is now marked.

These animals are EXTREMELY territorial, and will not just "go away" or give up and move on because you (or someone else) does some trapping or patch work.  "Let's close up the hole they chewed to get in through, and they'll go away!"  Really?  Well what’s to keep them from making another hole two feet away?  And that's assuming that you (or someone else) used the proper materials in the first place.  Odds are, if they don't know they need to seal every possible entry point, then they didn't use the correct materials/methods either.  This lack of knowledge and taking these "short cuts" can make any rodent seem like superman!

This is where having a professional is needed.  Since Squirrels only need a very small point to start chewing and regain entry to a home, you'll want someone who has dealt with it before and knows what to look for.  As you can imagine, missing and opening or possible entry point the size of a coin on an entire home can be very easy if you don't know what to look for and where to look. 

Feel free to email or call us with questions.