Scratching in the Walls at Night? What It Is and What to Do (New Hampshire Guide)
Few sounds are more unsettling than scratching inside a wall at 2 a.m. In New Hampshire, the culprit is almost always one of four animals, and the time of night tells you a lot.
Light, fast scratching after dark: mice or rats
Mice are most active between dusk and dawn. The sound is quick, light and tends to move along the base of walls, behind kitchen cabinets and under floors. If you find droppings the size of rice grains, it is mice. Larger droppings with blunt ends mean rats. Either way, rodent control that includes sealing the foundation is the fix — traps alone just create a vacancy.
Heavy scampering at dawn and dusk: squirrels
Grey squirrels are up at first light and again late afternoon. The noise is louder, more like running across the ceiling, and often comes with chewing. Flying squirrels, common in wooded NH towns, are active at night and sound like a small crowd. Read our squirrel removal page for how one-way doors work.
Slow, heavy thumping at night: raccoons
If it sounds like someone walking around up there, it probably is a raccoon. Females look for attics in late winter and spring to have kits. Never seal the entry until you know the babies are out; that is why professional raccoon removal starts with a search for a nest.
Chirping or fluttering in the wall during the day: bats
Bats squeeze into gaps as small as a dime and sleep during the day, so a daytime chirp or rustle behind a gable or chimney chase is a strong sign. New Hampshire bats are protected during maternity season, so timing matters. Our bat exclusion service is built around the legal calendar.
What to do tonight
- Note the time, the location and what the sound is like
- Check outside at dusk for animals leaving the roofline
- Do not plug holes yet — trapping an animal inside creates a dead animal problem
- Call a local pest control and wildlife removal company