Investor · Maui, HI · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 3k+ votes
So a bird got in my attic, made a nest, and then had babies. Then one of the babies learned how to move around and fell down one of the wall cavities between studs on an exterior wall.
So... obviously I'm a compassionate guy and would like to help it.. but more so, I don't want it dying and smelling up my office. Plus, its making a lot of noise today.
So... what would you do? Leave it? Tear off a bit of the exterior siding (cedar shake siding) and get it out? Anyone deal with this before?
I've been on skype with @Brandon Turner throughout the day and I can say that the bird is only half as annoying as Charlie the dog and his harem of cats.
Definitely open up the wall. Why open it up from the outside instead of from the inside? Would it be much easier to remove and patch up the sheetrock instead of wood siding?
Had a business that dealt with this all the time. Easier to open sheet rock at floor inside just above molding. First carefully use a large drill bit by hand (1/2-3/4) and make a small opening to confirm it is a bird not a squirrel or other feeding on baby birds. If it is a bird then duct tape a clear/white bag over a pre cut rectangle at 16oc by 3 inches high when the sheet rock falls into the bag the bird should follow if not just use heavy gloves to capure it and release outside
Note about birds. Birds get into dryer and exhaust hood vents all the time. They also (depending on species) will bring in a ton of nesting material to create a nest. In NJ we have chimney swifts to which a pair can collect 1 large garbage can of debris in a 24 hour period. This can cause carbon monoxide to back up into the home and or cause a fire. Birds can also carry mites to which you will blame your puppy or cat when in fact it is coming from the birds. Any more questions or animal issues PLEASE feel free to ask as I often can make suggestions only and save you a bundle.
I would think your exterior wall assembly probably has cedar shakes over some sort of sheathing (plywood or osb) and vapor barrier such as tyvek or felt paper and maybe even rigid insulation. I agree with Minh, drywall is fairly easy to repair compared to dealing with all of that.
A couple of more thoughts...If baby bird can't fly it should be at the very bottom of the wall, so you could just cut a handhole just above the base trim (not farther than from hand to elbow) but if you have batt insulation in the wall, then it will be harder to find where to actually cut the hole. The bird could be stuck anywhere between the floor and the ceiling between two studs........I am sure you prefer to only patch one handhole instead of many, or one large trying to find the little tweeter.
I agree with others that the drywall would be easier to repair. Don't want to mess with the vapor barrier and everything on the exterior side. I also like Jeff's idea about using a bag over the opening you cut to capture the bird.
A question, though: what will you do with the bird once you get it out? It probably can't fly yet, so it can't be released outside, unless you intend it to be easy prey for your cat. Perhaps you can call the local animal control to see if they'll take it? Or maybe you're up to raising it yourself? It's actually not that hard. We had a bird fall out of a nest at our house when I was a little kid, so we put it in a box with a towel over it so it couldn't get out, then put a little rag in there like a nest, and bought some stuff for it to eat (I think they were grubs, can't remember now, but you can get them at pet stores). Once it was old enough to fly (you'll know because it will keep trying to get out of the box and flying up into the towel), we released it outside.
Thanks everyone! Yeah, patching the drywall will probably be easier, but it won't be easy, as my desk is built into the wall. I guess this evening I'm doing some construction! (don't mock @Joshua D. or @Ben Leybovich !)
And yeah - @J Scott - my exterior walls have no insulation at all, but that's not too abnormal in this area with old houses. I may blow in insulation at some point.
I've been on skype with @Brandon Turner throughout the day and I can say that the bird is only half as annoying as Charlie the dog and his harem of cats.
Dude - answer your Skype, why don't you. Call an exterminator...don't be one. Don't have an exterminator? Let me give you my guy's number - he is great. Pick up your Skype... or be like Ozzy and bite its' head off...yam
So . . . where are we with this bird situation? Did you get animal control out to rescue the birds? How many holes in the walls did it take to save these birds?
Remove the drywall don't take out the outside of the house I think it would be easier to remove from the inside we use to get birds all the time in our fireplace and installed the little gate so when they fall we could catch them that way.
I thought I would share some pieces of the personal responses I received from my new "friend" here at BP.. Mr. @Brandon Turner.
Hah Jeff- well, I should update that thread. I tore off the siding and ... the bird musta got so scared it found its way up and out of the hole while I was cutting into the house. Then it fell down another, interior wall. Ugh. So I cut into that and got 2 birds out and put em outside. They are just about flyable - they should be able to fly in a day or two- so I put them under my house in the crawlspace. I think they'll be fine there, and the Momma is going in and out feeding them it seems.
However, it started raining so I didn't patch up the hole in my siding. And now the mama bird is building a nest in that wall! :) I gotta go out and fix that problem now.
@Brandon Turner Ughhh I gotcha re the exterior siding dilemma. Clients always wanted my crews to take the outside siding off instead of ruining the "Palace like" interiors. Due to their(the clients) lack of real world experience in construction they never understood it was easier to take down book cases/desks and sheet rock then ripping off siding (which often scare the animals to migrate to other parts of interior walls in the home) to die and stink up the joint. Especially when it was about to rain and covering an outside wall exposed to the elements could only lead to more trouble. Best part was after the clients saw all the work we had to do to get rid of the bird, bird nesting debris, spray disinfectant, and repair all the voids to the exterior of the home to prevent this from happening again they never questioned my now exorbitant labor intensive bill. I was then afforded tons of referral work re any future nuisance wildlife control work within the clients entire social and family network. The power of knowledge is awesome! I LOVE BP
Alright folks, here's the (sorta) rest of the story. I'll add on to what I told Jeff on the PM System. Its a fun story!
So, I decided after much deliberation, I would cut into the siding. In the end, my cedar shakes came off easier than I think the drywall patching would be.
However, before I get there, the story gets more interesting.
While sitting at my desk trying to avoid the noise of the chirping, ANOTHER baby bird fell down ANOTHER wall in my house, this time an exterior wall.
So I had 2 birds chirping and crying all day.
I started with the exterior one. I removed the shingle, then took my Sawzall and cut a 1 foot by 6 inch hole.
And I got inside... and the bird was GONE.
Like, I think I scared it by cutting it, so it managed to climb out and back up into my attic.
So I go and open up the inside wall, via a closet (luckily, wood walls in that closet, not drywall, so I only had to pop off a panel) and inside I found TWO birds. So bird from the exterior hole, I think, got so scared it climbed out, ran 10 feet, and fell into the 2nd wall.
So I put both birds outside in a dog kennel, but apparently a bird can squeeze a lot smaller than I'd imaging cause both hoped through the chainlink fence holes and ran under my house through a small vent near the ground.
But, momma bird is now flying down and taking care of them under the house. They were SO close to being able to fly, hopefully they'll be able to in the next day or two.
So now I just need to keep my cats indoors until its safe for the birds to fly away.
One final piece of the story: So, right after I finished getting the hole opened, a big rainstorm hit (big surprise, Washington) and I ran in the house, leaving the hole open.
And guess who immediately started a new nest in the hole I opened? Yep. Momma bird.
So once again, I am sitting here with the sound of a bird in my wall. This evening I will be taking care of that.
Thanks everyone for the help! And thanks @Account Closed for reminding me to update everyone!
Put the baby outside. The mother will hear it and come to rescue it. Mom's are like that with babies. If you have cats put it up on something high and the parents will feed it until it can fly.
stephen
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Originally posted by @Kimberly T.:
. . . A question, though: what will you do with the bird once you get it out? It probably can't fly yet, so it can't be released outside, unless you intend it to be easy prey for your cat. Perhaps you can call the local animal control to see if they'll take it? Or maybe you're up to raising it yourself? It's actually not that hard. We had a bird fall out of a nest at our house when I was a little kid, so we put it in a box with a towel over it so it couldn't get out, then put a little rag in there like a nest, and bought some stuff for it to eat (I think they were grubs, can't remember now, but you can get them at pet stores). Once it was old enough to fly (you'll know because it will keep trying to get out of the box and flying up into the towel), we released it outside.