Boise Family Begins Treatment After Rabid Bat Found in Home

A bat found last week in a Boise home has tested positive for rabies. The couple and their two children living in the home all had potential exposures to the rabid bat and have sought medical care.

“Bats have very small teeth and people can be bitten while sleeping and not be aware of it,” says Dr. Leslie Tengelsen, Deputy State Epidemiologist. “Waking in a room with a bat is considered a possible rabies exposure if you were unsure of the bat’s activities during the night.”

Rabies causes a fatal viral illness in humans and other animals. While most bats are harmless and do not carry rabies, they are the only animal in Idaho to naturally carry the virus. Tengelsen advises people to avoid contact with bats and to make sure their dogs, cats and horses are vaccinated against rabies. Even indoor pets should be vaccinated to avoid exposures to bats that may enter homes.

“It is extremely important for people to avoid bats or other wild animals that appear sick or are acting aggressively or abnormally,” she says. “People should call their health care provider immediately if they have been bitten or scratched by a bat or other wild animal, unvaccinated pet or pet whose vaccine has expired. Medical therapy administered to people soon after an exposure to a rabid animal is extremely effective in preventing rabies.”

So far this year, eight rabid bats have been reported across Idaho. Last year, 26 rabid bats were confirmed from sites across the state. People usually come in contact with bats through a pet bringing home a sick or dead bat, or by a bat entering their homes through small openings or open windows.

Besides vaccinating your pets, people also should avoid physical contact with bats. If a person does come in contact with a bat, collect the bat in a container without touching it and contact your District Health Department to arrange testing, which is a free service.

Tengelsen says the Boise family involved with this case did the right thing by collecting the bat and immediately having it tested for rabies. Once they learned the bat was rabid, they began therapy. “Rabies prophylactic therapy is extremely effective and relatively painless, with a series of injections given over a 28 day period,” she says.

This is a good reminder to bat-proof your home by checking chimneys, roof peaks, loose screening and other areas where bats can enter and make repairs. Bats can squeeze through areas as small as a quarter. If you are concerned that you have a bat colony living in your home, contact Peggy Kesner, an Idaho bat expert about bat-proofing your home and bat removal. She will provide information and assess how to best manage bats found in homes. People can contact her by email at bats@dddphotography.com

For further information call the District Health Department in your area. Information on rabies can also be found at the following websites: www.cdc.gov/rabies/ or www.batcon.org.

(Editors: For more information please contact Health and Welfare’s Tom Shanahan,
208-334-0668, or your District Health Department Public Information Officer.)