What Not to Do with a Dead Bat
One thing you definitely should not do if you find a dead bat is to put it in a jar and take it to your kids' school.
Yet that's exactly what one Montana parent decided to do last fall when the family cat brought home a dead bat. The tale appears in the current issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) weekly publication known as the MMWR (for Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report; not exactly beach reading).
The parent took the specimen to several classrooms, removed it from the jar and allowed students to handle it; even some teachers took part. One child dug her fingers in the creature's mouth to feel its teeth. The parent also brought the bat to an off-campus soccer game where still more kids and adults touched it. Apparently nobody thought twice about all this until the school nurse caught on and called public-health authorities.
From that point, the CDC and state and local officials took charge, determining that the bat indeed was rabid, notifying parents, interviewing those who were exposed to the bat and evaluating their need for rabies vaccination. Though only one person -- the girl who placed fingers in the bat's mouth -- was deemed by health authorities to have actually been exposed and hence to really need rabies shots, 74 people altogether sought and received vaccinations for fear they might have been exposed to the rabies virus. Nobody fell ill.
Which is all good, as untreated rabies is invariably fatal. Though many kinds of wildlife can carry rabies, bats are the biggest culprits in spreading rabies to humans in the U.S. Luckily, as we approach summer (and summer-camp season), the nation's store of rabies vaccine has been replenished after a two-year shortage.
Here's what the CDC says about what you SHOULD do with a dead bat:
While rabies can be caused from nonbite exposures, such an occurrence is rare. Assuming the bat did not bite a person prior to its death, the risk of rabies from a dead bat is remote. If there is any uncertainly about exposure to rabies, a person should contact the local or state health department. In the event that exposure does not appear to have occurred, a dead bat can be wrapped in plastic and discarded in appropriate facilities. Local and state animal control departments can provide further guidance on proper disposal of dead bats and other animals.
Have you had any rabies- or bat-related scares? Share your stories -- and vote in today's poll, please!
Jennifer LaRue Huget
June 1, 2009; 7:00 AM ET
Categories: Family Health , General Health , Vaccinations
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