We saw a bat that flew into our house through the garage perhaps the night before we saw it (we had been unloading groceries late that night). The good news is that our house and attic have since been inspected and declared free of bats. We are taking the rabies series of shots because it was strongly recommended by our doctor. In all, we'll have between 5 and 7 shots over four hospital visits. That's much better than in the old days, I hear! If we ever see a bat in our house again, we won't open the doors to get it to leave. We'll shut it in a room and call animal control for their bat removal (free in our county).
Why is it so important to trap a bat that comes indoors? I hear that a lot of people had bats in their houses growing up and even more recently. Here is what I've learned: It's hard to know for sure when the bat entered the house. It could have bitten us while we slept the night before we saw it- especially those of us who sleep with our bedroom doors open. The doctors said that having no apparent bite marks did not make us entirely safe because bat bites can be painless and nearly invisible. 'Creepy! So, they say that any bats inside homes need to be removed for rabies testing. Bats outdoors are beneficial and they usually steer clear of humans.
Surprisingly, another family at our school also had a bat problem this week. So we sat together in the emergency room (where our physicians sent us) and are on the same follow-up three-shot schedule (their two adorable kids are pictured with my three kids during our first follow-up shot session). Our friends did some research and learned that there is only a 10% or less chance that a bat that comes indoors has rabies. They had an expert remove the bat from their bedroom and, surprisingly, it did test positive for rabies. They are so glad that they had already begun the series of shots. Although painful and expensive (over $1,000 per person), these shots are much better than running the risk of developing rabies (which is nearly always fatal, as the doctors told me numerous times last week). Enough said about that.
Russell was so upset after our initial 5 hour visit to the Emergency Room (local physicians don't stock the rabies vaccine, we quickly learned). He really didn't care for his two shots, either. As we were leaving, Russell told the receptionist, "I don't like this place. I'm not coming back." She really got it and said, "I don't blame you one bit!"
Lydia is anxious about shots and bats. She now wants me to stay with her at all times. She agreed to sleep alone last night but she asked me this: "May I come in and wake you up if I'm upset by thinking about the bat?... after all, this is a BAT SITUATION, Mom." I agreed.
Please share your thoughts, comments, and questions with us below. I'll be checking back in too.
Posts
