No Bats Allowed
In December, a South Carolina woman died of rabies contracted from a bat, the first case in that state in 50 years. Five days ago, Reuters reported that a Massachusetts man died from the first case of human rabies in that state since 1935. Doctors say he was likely infected by a bat—the man was not even aware of having been bitten. Two days ago, officials in Rhode Island say a group of people may have been exposed to rabies by a bat a man was carrying in a cage. Peter Hanney, spokesperson for the RI Health Department said that even though the bat got away, anyone who came near the bat should be evaluated and/or treated for rabies, because rabies “is highly transmissible to humans, even without a bite or scratch from the animal,” according to Hanney . (http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/02/us-bat-rhodeisland-idUSTRE81123F20120202).
Fox news recently interviewed Dr. Steven Garner, New York Methodist Hospital Radiology Chair, on the Massachusetts case, citing several animals that are known to carry rabies, including bats, raccoons, foxes, coyotes, and, surprisingly, domestic cats. The disease, he points out, is 100% preventable with vaccinations. Bats, because they are so small and have tiny razor sharp teeth, can actually be inside your home and bite you unawares. Garner says if a bat is found in your home, unless you can trap the bat and have it tested, you must be vaccinated because “you just don’t know.” The CDC reports that the most common cause of rabies in humans is from infected bats. (http://www.cdc.gov/rabies/bats/education/index.html). While unlikely, exposure to rabies can, and does, happen. Not only that, but we should be diligent when we come into any sort of contact with them, especially in our homes.
Bats used to have sort of a bad rap, stemming, I guess, from vampire stories and old wives tales. Then, sometime in the eighties or nineties, bat awareness, education and conservation came on the scene and suddenly, bats were everybody’s best friend. People were buying bat houses and trying to protect the habitats and reputations of the sorely “misunderstood” critters.
I’m all for conservation. I love animals. I believe in humane, respectful treatment of nature. But I think the bat movement pulled a fast one. People have always known, I guess, that bats carry rabies, but somehow, I missed the day my school teachers talked about rabies because they were likely too busy talking about how cool bats were. In college, some friends and I went walking through the infamous “Bat Cave” on some old property just outside of Lebanon, MO. It didn’t even dawn on us that we were surrounded by—you guessed it—bats. We had nothing to fear. Bats were our friends.
I can tell you a short personal bat story that has changed, forever how I feel about them. For me, this is the real truth about bats: They are not my friends. About four years ago, I found my two kids playing with a comatose bat in our yard. I picked the thing up to get it away from them. After sending it off for testing through a local veterinarian’s office, we learned it was, in fact, rabid, and that they would have to undergo a series of rabies shots immediately*. Not only would that, but I, too, have to get the shots because of possible exposure. In short, we got the shots and recovered with no long-term effects beyond the emotional trauma of the whole experience. For the skeptics: Imagine, learning you’ve been exposed to a deadly virus in your own back yard, getting a personal phone call from the Health Department. A year or two later, on a field trip with my son’s class, while on a nature hike, I noticed some kids huddling around something, talking excitedly amongst themselves. When I approached, I discovered it was a bat lying on the ground. Instantly, I went into hyper-bat-alarm mode and bellowed, “Get away from the bat!” Ironically, on another field trip just a week later, we were at a conservation department watching an educational video about how interesting, cool and misunderstood bats are. I wanted to raise my hand and say, “Bats may be cool, but they are one of the top carriers of the deadly rabies virus in the U.S. Don’t get too close to them.”
Somehow, I’d gotten through 40 years of life without learning about the dangers of bats. Is the bat conservation movement to blame? Maybe. Sometimes, the best lessons come through experience. And though this one isn’t one I’d care to repeat, I now know it’s prudent to keep a safe distance from these creepy critters. In other words, I’m not leaving the light on for them. No bats allowed at my house.
*I must add here that if not for the suggestion by one of our doctors that day, the unthinkable might have happened. Shortly after finding the bat, we had an appointment at the dermatologist’s office. Joseph was going on about how it was so cool that he’d found this bat. The doctor was the one who suggested we send the bat off for testing. Had we not had that appointment that day, who knows what would have happened? Joseph possibly got bitten, as he had said the animal “scratched” him. He was young enough that discerning what really happened was difficult. The doctor could very well have saved his life that day!
