Bats eat millions of tons of insects each night across the United States, they are extremely important for the overall well-being of the ecosystem. Unfortunately, much prime bat habitat is destroyed each year, resulting in bats losing their lives or bats moving into people's houses. One thing we can do to prevent bats from moving into people’s houses is to put up a bat house (remember that one bat eats 600 to 1,000 mosquito-sized insects each HOUR). Bat houses may prevent bats from taking up occupancy in human dwellings. Health officials, when properly informed, love the use of bat houses for this very reason.

If you have bats living in an unwanted place please follow the directions below to remove them. Also please note that if you had a bat flying around in your house and you have children, unvaccinated pets, or were sleeping the bat NEEDS to be tested for rabies by your local health department. Very few bats have rabies, but you need to take precautions with any wild animal. For more information bats in your house see Bats Flying Around in Your House below.

A humane approach to excluding bats from your attic

Bats are one of the most beneficial mammals in the world. There are over 950 kinds of bats, and one common North American species, the big brown bat, may eat up to 6,000 insects during one summer night. Only one half of one percent of all bats get rabies, and only a few of species in Central America drink blood.

Nevertheless, many people are uncomfortable with bats, and do not want to share their attic with a colony of bats. Bats are probably just as uncomfortable sharing a house with people, and only resort to living in an attic when natural roosts like dead trees or caves are no longer available. If you don't want bats living in your attic, no problem, just follow the directions below.

There are proven ways to safely remove a colony from your house. Timing is crucial to enact a safe bat exclusion. Never do an exclusion during June, July, or August, when the colony is likely to consist of many young that can not fly. There are seasons to do an exclusion; in the spring after insects have appeared or in the fall after the babies have learned to fly.

The first step to a successful exclusion is to enlist the help of several friends to help you search the outside of your house for exiting bats. Start watching at sunset, and keep your eye on any small openings until one hour after sunset. Remember that bats can fit through a hole the size of your thumb, and that they move fast. Repeat this process for several nights, until you are confident that you know where they are exiting the house from. The second step is to mount a bat house close to the opening so that the bats can get accustomed to the house as they come and go. Bat houses are available from the Organization for Bat Conservation. After a bat house is placed up you should wait three or four days to let the bats get used to the house. Then in the afternoon cover all the openings with square pieces of screen mesh. Using duct tape, secure three sides of the mesh piece to the house, leaving the bottom open. The piece should be loose enough for the bats to crawl out of. When dusk comes the bats will crawl out, but will be unable to return to the attic. They will seek out the nearest, best place to roost, which will be the bat house. The screen should be left up for a week or so, at which point the hole(s) can be sealed permanently.

With a few dollars of material and a couple of bat houses anyone can humanely exclude unwanted bats. The time and effort that you spend to help the bats find a better home will be replayed many times over by the colony and the thousands of mosquitoes, flies, and moths they will eat You will also be setting a wonderful example for your children, friends, and neighbors when you show them how to co-exist with the natural world.

Steps for a proper exclusion of bats:

Step 1: Enlist the help of several friends to help you search the outside of your house for exiting bats. Start watching at sunset, and keep your eye on any small openings until one hour after sunset. Remember that bats can fit through a hole the size of your thumb, and that they move fast. Repeat this process for several nights, until you are confident that you know where they are exiting the house from.

Step 2: Mount a bat house close to the opening so that the bats can get accustomed to the house as they come and go.

Step 3: Cover all the openings with square pieces of screen mesh. Using duct tape, secure three sides of the mesh piece to the house, leaving the bottom open. The piece should be loose enough for the bats to crawl out of. When dusk comes the bats will crawl out, but will be unable to return to the attic. They will seek out the nearest, best place to roost, which will be the bat house.

Notice how 3 sides of the exclusion device are taped down, leaving the bottom open for the bats to exit.

Step 4: The screen should be left up for a week or so, at which point the hole(s) can be sealed permanently.

Critter Catchers is the exclusive bat removal partner for the Organization for Bat Conservation. In order to ensure proper exclusion, wildlife specialists receive annual training on various bat species and their behavior through this partnership. Those located in Southeast Michigan, are encouraged to contact Critter Catchers to safely remove bats from unwanted places. Animal control services are available to residential and commercial customers. You can help provide a more suitable habitat for bats, by requesting that an OBC bat house be installed during the bat exclusion process. See Critter Catchers Inc. "Bats in Your House" brochure.

248-432-2712 www.crittercatchersinc.com

If you have a bat flying around in your house, don’t panic. It is wise to nothe that all wild animals will bite if threatened so make sure never to touch a bat with your bare hands. If you think that there is reasonable probability that someone has come in contact with the bat, safely capture the animal with a butterfly net, box, thick towel, or leather work gloves. Put the bat in a secure container and contact your local animal control officer, and instruct the officer to have it tested immediately for rabies. If the test comes back positive (meaning the bat had the rabies virus), medical attention is needed. Contact your local emergency health provider. Reasonable probability includes sleeping adults, children who cannot give an accurate history of events, or a mentally incapacitated and intoxicated individual. If there is no reasonable possibility of contact with anyone, simply open a door or window and let the bat fly out.

Bats that are often found in people's houses are young bats that have lost their way. They may also be adult bats that accidentally fly through an open window or door. The first step in removing the bat from the home is to stay calm. If the bat is flying around, it is not trying to attack anyone, it is only attempting to find a way out. Turn on some lights in the house so that you can easily see the bat and the bat can also see (bats are not blind). Next, close the doors to adjoining rooms, open the doors and windows in the room the bat is flying around, and if possible, turn on a light outside so the bat can readily see the exit. The bat has very good echolocation (radar), but it is also frightened being in a human's house. More than likely, the bat will just fly right out the open door or window within a few minutes. You may want to be more direct and use a small mesh net or pillow case to gently catch the bat in flight. If the bat lands and does not fly again, there are other ways to remove it. First, put on a pair of thick leather work gloves, and find a small cardboard box or coffee can. Slowly walk up to the bat and put the container over the bat, slip a piece of cardboard or book behind it and take it outside and let it go.

As long as the bat never touches anyone, there is no need to worry about transmitting any diseases or viruses. The Center for Disease Control recommends that anyone that comes in direct, unprotected, contact with wild mammals should receive rabies post-exposure treatment from a health-care provider, if the animal is not able to be caught and tested. Rabies post-exposure treatment should also be administered in situations in which there is a reasonable probability that such contact occurred (e.g., a sleeping person awakes to find a bat in the room or an adult witnesses a bat in the room with a previously unattended child, mentally disabled person, or an intoxicated person).

Steps to Follow if a Bat is Flying in Your House

Step 1: Assess the situation. Was any one in the house sleeping or do you have children who cannot give an accurate history of events, or a mentally incapacitated or intoxicated individual in the house? Basically is anyone at risk that can not tell you for certain that they were not bit by the bat. If anyone was at risk contact your local health department immediately. Try to capture the bat so it can be tested for rabies. If not, follow steps below.

Step 2: Stay calm. The bat is not trying to attack anyone, it is only attempting to find a way out. Turn on some lights in the house so that you can easily see the bat and the bat can see as well.

Step 3: Close the doors to adjoining rooms, open the doors and windows in the room the bat is flying around, and if possible, turn on a light outside so the bat can readily see the exit.

Step 4: The bat will probably just fly right out the open door or window within a few minutes. You may want to be more direct and use a small mesh net or pillow case to gently catch the bat in flight. If the bat lands and does not fly again, there are other ways to remove it. First, put on a pair of thick leather work gloves, and find a small cardboard box or coffee can. Slowly walk up to the bat and put the container over the bat, slip a piece of cardboard or book behind it and take it outside and let it go.

Being bit by a bat or any other wild animal is a serious problem and should not be taken lightly. As soon as you realize you were bitten contact your local health department IMMEDIATLY! Few wild animals have rabies, however it is a deadly virus, and if you were bit by an animal with it you need rabies post-exposure shots. These are a series of 5 shots in your arm. The shots are administered on day 0, 3, 7, 14, and 28 after exposure. If at all possible try to contain the animal that bit you so it can be tested, if it tests negative you will not receive the shots. Please take all bites seriously, some people feel badly that the animal needs to be put down and tested for rabies, but remember that if you get rabies it is fatal and you do not want to take any chances.