Four people in Oneonta were exposed to rabies when a bat was found in a room they were sleeping in. They were started on rabies post-exposure treatment while the bat was captured and sent for rabies testing, in line with guidance from the CDC. The CDC recommends this course of action when direct contact between a human and a bat has occurred unless the exposed person can be sure a bite, scratch, or mucous membrane exposure did not happen. Recent data suggest that transmission of rabies virus can occur from minor, seemingly unimportant, or unrecognized bites from bats.
The cost of post-exposure treatment varies, a course of four doses of vaccine given over two weeks averages about $3,800 per person, not including costs for hospital treatment or wound care, but can be as high as $10,000 per person depending on your health care provider.
With that in mind, it’s worth preventing this situation from ever occurring in your home. If you suspect you have bats living somewhere inside your house, it’s essential to have them professionally removed.
Follow these handy tips to prevent bats from entering your home in the first place:
- Install tight screens on windows and doors.
- Avoid propping open doors at night without screens installed and closed.
- Turn off outside lights if possible to avoid attracting bugs bats will want to eat.
How do you know if you have a bat colony inside your home?
- You already have tight screens on doors and windows and practice closed door and window discipline, especially at night. However, you have had a bat inside your home, even with screens on your doors and windows. A bat in the house is very unusual, two bats inside your home in the space of a few days or weeks is a clear indication you have a colony. If you experience a bat inside your home once a year for a few years this is also a clear indicator you have a colony.
- You hear scratching noises in the walls and attic at night.
- You see “birds” flying in and out of your roofline or attic at dawn and dusk (if you are not looking hard they can appear to be birds flying around, a good tip is to look and see if they are “falling” from the roofline or seem to be disappearing into the roof somewhere).
- You have found dead bats in your attic or anywhere else in the house, including the basement.
At the end of the day, if you think you have a bat colony living inside your home, it’s best to call the professionals. Bat Remediation specialists will be able to pinpoint the places where bats are likely getting in, then remove them and seal vulnerable entry points to keep them from coming back. We can help you fix this issue once and for all. Call our customer service to set up an inspection at 877-264-2287.
Your Local Bat Removal Specialist,
Michael Koski
Source: https://www.cdc.gov/
Comments 2
Peggy
July 21, 2020 |
Do the rodent plug in (high pitch decimal ) work to rid of bats ? I seen one for bats on line but the store only had the rodent ones . Which do the same thing !
Tori Bruce
July 21, 2020 |
I would think they are similar. These noise makers may discourage bats from landing in certain places, but in our experience these emitters will not drive bats from their roost.