What Happens When a Bat Gets Inside Your Home?

This week we had a call from a homeowner who woke up to a bat flying around her bedroom. It had gotten from the attic into the living space and flew right past her head while she was in bed.

Because there was a chance she had been exposed while she was sleeping, we safely caught the bat instead of releasing it. She was then able to take it to the health department to be tested for rabies.

A lot of people don't realize that if you wake up and there's a bat in your bedroom, you shouldn't just let it outside. Bat bites can be so small that you may not even know you've been bitten. Rabies is spread through the saliva of an infected animal, usually from a bite, but it can also be spread if saliva gets into an open wound or your eyes, nose, or mouth. If a bat is found in a room with someone who was sleeping, a young child, or anyone who may not know if they were bitten, it's important to contact your local health department or healthcare provider immediately. If the bat tests positive, or can't be tested, treatment can be started before symptoms develop. Once symptoms of rabies begin, it is almost always fatal.

After catching the bat, we inspected the home and found a colony living in the attic.

The solution isn't catching or killing them. In Michigan, bats are protected wildlife because several species have experienced population declines due to a disease called White nose Syndrome. The legal and humane way to solve the problem is through a bat exclusion.

For this home, we'll be sealing every potential entry point except the main exits, installing one-way bat door so the bats can leave but not get back in, and then coming back to remove the doors and permanently seal those final openings once we're sure the colony is out.

One question we've been getting a lot lately is, "Can you do that now?"

Not yet.

Michigan has a maternity season when baby bats are born and aren't able to fly. During that time, exclusions can't legally be performed because the babies would be trapped inside. We have to wait until they're flying on their own, which is generally after August 15.

We are already scheduling jobs for after August 15. If you think you have bats, now is actually a good time to have us come take a look. We can inspect the house, identify where they're getting in, and get your project on the schedule so you're not waiting weeks once the exclusion season opens back up.

If you've been hearing scratching in the attic, seeing bats around your roofline at dusk, or had one get into your house, don't ignore it. Catching the problem early usually makes for a much smoother repair.