Pest control - Other common pests

We also get asked about a variety of other animals which are either a minor nuisance, or we do not deal with. These include:

Bats

Bats are not pests they are protected animals. You must not disturb them or their roosts. They are also beneficial in that they eat flies and other pest insects.

For more information see the Bat Conservation Trust's website

Squirrels

Please note that from 1st April 2008 we no longer offer a service to deal with squirrels.

Slugs/ Snails

These creatures can often be a nuisance but rarely a pest. To control them it may be necessary to clear away all leaf litter, stacks of wood/stones and any other potential harbourages.

Sometimes numbers can be drastically reduced by eliminating the creatures on consecutive evenings. A well known way of killing these pests is to half fill a shallow container with beer which will attract them (30 times more effective than pellets). Once they have entered the container they cannot escape. It is also known that slugs dislike caffeine, therefore a fine layer of coffee around plant bottoms and at the base of external doors may help move them on.

Some gardeners prefer to use nematodes, which can be purchased via mail-order, which when released late spring/early summer, can reduce snail/slug numbers.