Can I smoke the animal out or seal the top myself?

Not recommended; it usually traps or kills the animal inside, or sends a cornered animal into the house instead.

Will a cap really keep animals out?

Yes, a properly sized cap with mesh screening is effective; most repeat cases involve a missing or damaged cap.

Do you clean up droppings and debris too?

Yes, full cleanup and sanitizing is part of the job, not just animal removal.

Chimney Animal & Nest Removal in Dallas-Fort Worth

Q: What if it's a bird, not a mammal?

Often a chimney swift, which is federally protected during nesting; removal may need to wait until young fledge.

Something’s living in your chimney. Here’s how we get it out safely

An uncapped flue looks, to a raccoon or a squirrel, exactly like a hollow tree, which is its natural den. In North Dallas and the wooded suburbs especially, that makes an open chimney one of the easiest entry points into a house for wildlife.

Humane removal Licensed & insured Cap included

We get calls year-round for this, but two windows are busiest: early spring, when raccoons are denning to have their litters, and again in early fall, when young squirrels are looking for their own territory. If you’re hearing scratching, scurrying, or chirping in the flue, it’s very likely one of the two, or a chimney swift nest if it’s a soft twittering sound.

Why this is more common in the leafier DFW suburbs

Wooded, established neighborhoods across North Dallas, Plano, Richardson, and similar areas have exactly the tree cover that supports a healthy raccoon and squirrel population, and an uncapped or damaged-cap chimney sitting right next to that tree canopy is an obvious, sheltered den site. Newer, more open subdivisions farther out see it less, but it’s far from rare there either, especially with squirrels.

Chimney swifts are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. If swifts are actively nesting, we cannot remove the nest or block the flue until the young have fledged, usually by late summer. We’ll explain what that means for your timeline if that’s what we find.

How we handle it

Confirm what’s actually up there before doing anything, by scope or careful inspection

For mammals: a one-way excluder device that lets the animal leave but not return

Full removal of nesting material, droppings, and debris once the animal is confirmed out

Sanitizing treatment for areas with heavy droppings, which can carry real health risks

A properly fitted chimney cap installed afterward so it can’t happen again

Signs you have an animal in the chimney, not just a draft noise

Scratching, scurrying, or chirping sounds, especially at dawn or dusk

A strong ammonia-like smell from the fireplace, from droppings

Visible nesting material in the firebox or blocking the damper

No cap currently installed, or a cap that’s bent, rusted, or missing screens

Frequently asked questions

Can I just smoke them out or seal the top myself?

Please don’t. Trapping an animal inside with young nearby, or sealing a live animal in, usually ends with it dying in the flue, which is a much worse problem to solve, plus you risk an angry, cornered raccoon coming down into the house instead of leaving.

What if it’s a bird, not a mammal?

Common chimney-nesting birds in DFW are usually chimney swifts, which are protected during nesting season, meaning we may need to wait for the young to fledge before we can remove the nest and cap the flue.

Will a cap really keep them out for good?

A properly sized, well-fastened cap with mesh screening is genuinely effective. Almost every repeat case we see involves a missing cap, a bent one, or one with the mesh rusted through.

Do you clean up droppings and nesting debris, or just remove the animal?

Full cleanup is part of the job. Droppings, especially from raccoons, can carry real health risks, so we don’t consider it done until that’s cleared and sanitized.