It’s bat season, and Maine CDC has some tips

AUGUSTA – The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention is urging Mainers to take steps to limit exposure to rabies from bats during the most active time of the year for the flying mammals.
August and September are the most active time of the year for bats in Maine, and Maine CDC encourages people to be cautious around bats, keep distance and know what to do following an exposure to a bat.
Bats play an important role in local ecosystems, but can spread viruses like rabies, which can be fatal in humans, pets and livestock. Timely treatment following a rabies exposure is effective in preventing disease in humans, CDC said. Human rabies cases are rare in the United States, and Maine last reported a human rabies case in 1937. However, the rabies virus is naturally found in Maine wildlife including bats, foxes, raccoons and skunks. In 2020, bats accounted for 41 percent of the 584 animals submitted to the Maine state lab for rabies testing, with 13 bats testing positive for rabies.
Rabies spreads when infected mammals bite, and in some cases scratch, other mammals. Contact with an infected mammal’s brain tissue or spinal cord can also transmit the virus to humans and pets. The virus is not transmitted in blood, urine, feces, skunk spray or dried saliva. A rabid animal may show a variety of symptoms or no symptoms at all, so always be cautious around wildlife, including bats, or any animals you do not know.

BAT EXPOSURE
A bat exposure includes bites, scratches or handling a bat without gloves. It may also include awaking to a bat in the bedroom or finding a bat in a room with an unaccompanied child or incapacitated adult. Pets and livestock that hold a bat in their mouth, or are in the same area as the bat, such as a living room or barn, may also be exposed.
It may be difficult in some situations to tell if a bat exposed a person or domestic animal. So, evaluate every bat exposure on a case-by-case basis and always treat with caution, the CDC said.
Contact a health care provider about any potential exposure.

TRAPPING AND RELEASING A BAT
If exposure occurs, always try to capture the bat if you can do so safely.
Never handle a bat with your bare hands. Wear thick leather gloves, if possible.
Put a container over the bat once it lands, then gently slide cardboard underneath.
Take care not to damage the bat’s head. Damaging the head can invalidate rabies testing.
Only release the bat outdoors if you are 100 percent certain no people or pets were exposed.
Do this by capturing and moving the bat outside, or by opening exterior doors and windows to allow the bat to leave on its own.
If there is any uncertainty, call Maine CDC before releasing the bat.

SUBMITTING BATS FOR RABIES TESTING
Maine’s Health and Environmental Testing Laboratory tests bats for rabies.
If a bat exposure occurs with a person or pet, contact the nearest Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlifes Warden Service Dispatch Center. If you cannot contact a game warden, call your local animal control officer.
A game warden will pick up and deliver the bat to the state lab for rabies testing. Do not mail the bat yourself.
An epidemiologist will follow up with results on any bat that tests positive.
Lab results for bats submitted before 9 a.m. are usually available the same day.

RABIES TREATMENT
Rabies post-exposure prophylaxis is the treatment for rabies.
Rabies PEP should be administered within 10 days of an exposure.
In most cases, rabies PEP can wait until lab results come back for the tested animal.
People exposed to bats should contact a health care provider.
Your health care provider will make the decision to begin or stop rabies PEP.
Rabies Management in Pets and Livestock
If your pets or livestock are exposed to a bat, call your veterinarian.
Domestic animals exposed to bats may need to be quarantined for some length of time to rule out rabies.
Keeping your pets up to date on rabies vaccination can reduce quarantine times.

BAT PROOF BUILDINGS
Contact a Maine IF&W Regional Wildlife biologist who can talk to you about your options for removing bats from your home or building.
For more information visit the Maine CDC Rabies webpage or Maine IF&W Bats webpage.