WAMPSVILLE, N.Y. – Summer is a time to be vigilant of the rabies virus present in bats. Bats can spread rabies to other wildlife, unvaccinated domestic animals and humans. People are more likely to encounter bats in the summer, as they fly around in search of insects and roost inside attics, behind shutters, barns or outbuildings and sometimes walls. Rabies is a deadly disease that attacks the central nervous system, the brain and spinal cord.
The rabies virus spreads through an infected animal’s saliva or animal drool. If an animal has rabies and bites you – or licks its claw before it scratches you – then you could be exposed to the rabies virus and may need the rabies vaccine. Rabies does not spread by blood, urine, feces or by petting an animal with rabies.
Although most bats do not have rabies, Madison County has had a bat test positive for the rabies virus in each of the last three years. This is a stark reminder that, although rare, rabies is still a danger to humans, unvaccinated pets and wild animals.
If you, a pet, or livestock are scratched or bitten by a bat, or if you wake up to a bat in the room, if possible, capture the bat without touching it and without damaging its head. After an exposure:
– if a bat is available to test and does not have rabies, the rabies vaccine is not necessary.
– if the bat is not captured and tested, or if it is captured and tested positive, anyone who may have been exposed should be given the rabies vaccine.
The process of capturing a bat can be summed up in three simple steps, Find, Capture, Call:
– find the bat – where it has landed and perched, often at the top of a curtain or another high spot.
– capture the bat – use a flat piece of cardboard, a cardboard box, thick gloves and tape.
– call the Madison County Public Health Rabies Program at 315-366-2526 to get further directions.
In preparation, you can watch a short video from the New York State Department of Health which shows how to safely capture a bat in your home: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puP8qbATPKg.
For more information about rabies, to report an animal bite, to discuss testing a bat for rabies, or to find upcoming rabies vaccination clinics for your pet, visit Madison County Public Health at healthymadisoncounty.org or call the Madison County Public Health Rabies Program at (315) 366-2526.
