Bat tests positive for rabies after biting Washtenaw County man
With warmer weather here for the season, the possibility of encountering a bat has returned, too, the Washtenaw County Public Health Department said last week in reminding residents about the risk of rabies.
By mid-June, the health department sent 32 animals to a state lab to test for rabies, the deadly virus spread primarily by animals.
So far this year, one bat has tested positive for rabies after biting a Washtenaw County man who sat on it by mistake this spring. Public health officials said the man was at home when he felt a pinch, and then found the bat.
He captured the bat in a shoebox and brought it to the health department.
The bat was euthanized and sent to the
In 2010, two bats tested positive for rabies.
A suspicion of a bat bite or lick is enough to call the public health department, said Susan Cerniglia, a health educator and public information officer for the county health department.
“If a bat is just in your house flying around, and you get it out, there’s not necessarily anything that needs to be done,” Cerniglia said. “If the bat was in a room with someone while they were sleeping or a child or infant that we can ‘t be sure there wasn’t a bite, the animal would need to be tested and processed”
And first, the animal would need to be brought in. The health department recommends wearing leather gloves and placing a coffee can or a box over the bat. A piece of cardboard with holes punched into it should be taped over the container.
If a person has potentially been exposed to rabies, treatment requires a regimen of immune globulin and four doses of rabies vaccine over two weeks. Treatment also might be needed if the animal can’t be found but exposure is a possibility.
People and pets can be vaccinated against rabies. The health department recommends pre-exposure vaccinations for individuals who work with rabies in labs or those who work in animal control or as wildlife officers.
To make a report or ask questions about a bat encounter, the health department can be reached at 734-544-6700. Evenings, weekends and holidays, a communicable disease on-call nurse is available at 734-891-4327.
Juliana Keeping covers general assignment and health and the environment for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at julianakeeping@annarbor.com or 734-623-2528. Follow Juliana Keeping on Twitter
Comments
Jared D
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 11:47 p.m.
Keep deleting the comments of your readers. The problem at annarbor.com is far worse than a writer who threatens pets. I clicked on a story about rabid bats and what banner ad do I see? "Bat Problems? Critter Catchers, Inc..." You are now free to delete another comment...
DAN
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 4:58 p.m.
Some specificity on the part of the county would help,
A2K
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 4:19 p.m.
Glad the man's ok...just remember folks that most bats are fine (in fact, their numbers are in serious decline in many states from white-nose syndrome and habitat destruction) so go ahead and put up that bat house in the back yard, they eat a ton of bugs and mosquitoes and are fun to watch of a summer evening.
Jimmy McNulty
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 11:17 a.m.
I don't fear bats. If one gets near me I'll just call Juliana and tell her it flew near a child. I'm sure she'll be glad to come over and "end" my bat problem for me.
Voice of reason
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 5:06 a.m.
Perhaps we need to leash men who bite bats and spread nasty germs.
asymptote
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 3:32 a.m.
what's the chance you're gonna be bitten by a bat?
tom swift jr.
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 2:16 a.m.
They should have kept that bat on a leash.
Berda Green
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 1:38 a.m.
thanks alot
nicole
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 12:43 a.m.
Dogs spread many diseases to humans. But it's not PC to talk about it so no body does. Their poop alone spreads lots of undesirable things.
Voice of reason
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 5:02 a.m.
Humans spread more disease and blight than any animal. Dogs didn't cause global warming now, did they?
WalkingJoe
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 12:36 a.m.
Gee, must have been a dogs fault because we all know they have rabies too don't they Juliana.
John of Saline
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 10:42 p.m.
Um, what? That makes no sense.
Macabre Sunset
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 11:46 p.m.
Love the headline. Did they have to put down the poor man who gave the bat rabies?
Jimmy McNulty
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 11:18 a.m.
Ozzy beware.
Epengar
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 10:31 p.m.
Bat Conservation International has a useful set of pages on how to get bats out of buildings <a href="http://www.batcon.org/index.php/bats-a-people/bats-in-buildings/" rel='nofollow'>http://www.batcon.org/index.php/bats-a-people/bats-in-buildings/</a> they have a video too: <a href="http://www.batcon.org/index.php/bats-a-people/removing-a-bat.html" rel='nofollow'>http://www.batcon.org/index.php/bats-a-people/removing-a-bat.html</a> More locally, the Cranbrook Institute of Science (in Bloomfield Hills) is hosting the 10th annual Great Lakes Bat Festival on July 9th. "The Festival celebrates the unique role of bats in the Great Lakes ecosystem as insect eaters, while dispelling myths and misinformation that generate needless fears and threaten bats and their habitats around the world. The Festival features activities for children, families, educators and conservation professionals. The Festival is free with museum admission which is $12.50 for adults and $9.50 for children and seniors." <a href="http://science.cranbrook.edu/calendar/2011-07/bat-festival" rel='nofollow'>http://science.cranbrook.edu/calendar/2011-07/bat-festival</a>
julieswhimsies
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 7 p.m.
I was bitten by a bat last year. It was hiding in a tiny little box, I was folding to be recycled. Luckily I was able to catch it and it tested negative for rabies.
CincoDeMayo
Wed, Jul 6, 2011 : 11:25 p.m.
Last summer, I was in my car, reached over to grab my jacket, and grabbed a bat along with it. I did freak when I realized what little squirmy thing was looking up at me. But I did not get bitten, thankfully.
DDOT1962
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 11:59 a.m.
Wow! What are the chances? Where did the box come from and how do you believe the bat came to be there? That is such an odd occurence!
Arboriginal
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 6:06 p.m.
If that bat comes near me, I will end it!
John of Saline
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 10:42 p.m.
Tennis racket.
DDOT1962
Tue, Jul 5, 2011 : 11:56 a.m.
Give the bat a chance by putting it on a leash - a short one.
huh7891
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 11:34 p.m.
Careful Arboinginal..next you'll have the bat lovers after you for threatening them.
dading dont delete me bro
Mon, Jul 4, 2011 : 2:32 p.m.
can we get a neighborhood or township or...? can we get a range for bats? inquiring minds want to know....