Soffits are a covering for the underside of the part of the roof that extends past your outer walls. This area, if not sealed with a soffit is open and offers access to wild animals who want a warm place to nest for the winter. The soffit is usually made from wood or aluminum but can also be made from concrete and steel. The purpose of a soffit is not just to keep animals out, it also keeps your attic ventilated. If an attic is not ventilated it will overheat, the shingles will be ruined and the electric bill will skyrocket. Replacing insulation or a roof is very expensive, a roof replacement can be in the tens of thousands of dollars. So the nest time you buy a new house or move to a new property make sure to inspect the soffit or hire a professional to inspect it. Without a soffit, your house will not be liveable.
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The most common animal to enter your drip edge, which is what the soffit covers, are raccoons, field mice, squirrels and birds. They tend to enter through the drip edge into the attic where they make a nest. Squirrels are by far the most common to make this trip and are also most common to have babies. Squirrels can give birth up to twice a year, once at the end of winter and once in late summer. They will find a male and take them back to the nest to mate when they are sure they have produced children she will kick the male out of her nest by force. She will then spend the next few weeks eating as much as she can and building a comfortable nest for her new babies. Getting a squirrel out when they are not pregnant is easy, the same as for when they are pregnant. They are not willing to live somewhere that could endanger their young. However, once they give birth, getting them out of the attic is nearly impossible. The squirrel now has children and would die to protect them. If you try to close her in the one-way door she will chew a new hole. In cases like this, you will simply have to wait for them to leave of their own volition.
You can hire a professional but there only so much anyone can do about a squirrel with babies. A professional can enter the attic and remove immobile babies and place them outside by the one-way door, this can help accelerate the process of eviction.