Maine CDC Offers Tips on How to Avoid Getting Rabies from Bats

Flying mammals are most active now through early September

AUGUSTA - The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC) urges Mainers to take steps to limit exposure to rabies from bats at this time of year, as bats are most active from August into early September. 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. 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 Exposures

A bat exposure includes bat 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. For pets and livestock, this may include holding a bat in their mouths or being in the same area as the bat, such as a living room or barn.

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.

Contact a health care provider about any potential exposure. Follow these steps if you, someone under your care, or a pet is exposed to a bat.

Trapping and Releasing Bats

• If an 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 bats 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

• Maines 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 (Maine IF&W) 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 in Humans

• Rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) 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:

• Maine CDC Rabies webpage
• Maine IF&W Bats webpage
• Maine CDC disease reporting & consultation line: 1-800-821-5821(available 24/7)
• Maine IF&W Game Warden Dispatch Centers (for bat pick-up and delivery)
• Augusta: 1-800-452-4664
• Bangor: 1-800-432-7381
• Houlton: 1-800-924-2261
• Maine IF&W Regional Offices