Yes, in some cases if your damper is left open, animals can come down your chimney. In these instances, it’s more likely that they have fallen in while looking for a safe spot rather than entered your house intentionally. Leaving your damper closed or installing a chimney cap can prevent animals from coming inside.

You’ll want to call a licensed and insured wildlife removal company that offers:

• Full property inspection—indoor and outdoor

• Proper animal identification

• Written management plan with follow-up visits included

• Humane removal techniques

• Preventative exclusion measures

If it’s an emergency and you can’t wait, you’ll need to contact an emergency animal control company near you.

When woodpeckers start banging on your walls or roof, they are probably looking for insects to eat, storing nuts for winter, drilling a hole to make a nest, or communicating with other birds to establish territory or find a mate.

The size of the hole can help determine the reason for the pecking. Small irregular holes are a result of insect hunts. Acorn holes are more consistently sized and often fitted with a nut in the middle. Nest holes are large and have rounded edges. If the bird is pecking to mark its territory or attract a mate, it may leave dents rather than holes, and the noise will stop when the mating season starts in spring.

Look for goose repellents that contain the ingredient methyl anthranilate. This is a natural chemical found in grape juice. In human food, it’s often used as grape flavoring. With geese, it’s highly irritating. Grape Kool-Aid contains methyl anthranilate, the active ingredient in most bird repellents. It won’t harm geese, but it will deter them.