Help we have a Bat in our House!

Okay huge dilemma, a bat is in the house, and is in the Christmas tree! What to do?

reply to post by samlf3rd
Call animal control?

I'd say that's a better option than trying to burn it out...I'd suggest not doing much with it yourself as it COULD be carrying rabies.

reply to post by Praetorius


That's what I told my buddy, he said gab a sheet and catch it.

Bats are fairly harmless. My cats have dragged them in the house before. I usually get a couple of oven mitts or a big kitchen towel folded a few times, surround the bat and catch him gently. Then I release him outside so he can continue the good work of eating all the nasty flying insects I dislike so much.

reply to post by samlf3rd
That might work, but with as quick and agile they are, would there be much luck of catching it? I've never tried to catch a bat myself but would imagine it's not easy.

Well, if Animal control is out to lunch on a New Years Eve and nothing else works... BB Guns are quite effective for indoor pest control where the idea of a firearm is patently ridiculous. I agree with another here about being careful. I love bats..but disease likes them too and this sure would be a bad way to ring in the new year.

I'd hope you try everything else imaginable...but if it all fails, there is a safe way to end the problem without endangering anyone else in the process. Poor thing...I hope it can be encouraged to seek life elsewhere...like outside.

reply to post by samlf3rd


put the tree on the porch

are you in the uk? its illegal to disturb them here, you get like a 5k fine for killing them or disturbing the habitat...think you have to call DEFRA..??

reply to post by samlf3rd


Watch Blacksheep. It will teach you how : ). Could you call animal control? Thats where our tax dollars are right?

reply to post by CharonIncarnate


Hilarious!
We are in the U.S. so we should be fine. It's time to try and move the tree outside brb...

Originally posted by samlf3rd
reply to post by CharonIncarnate

 

Hilarious!
We are in the U.S. so we should be fine. It's time to try and move the tree outside brb...

I hope he covered it first with a sheet. LOL

Wow that was scary, the bat wasn't in the tree-that was a chipmunk ornament. The bat was in the kitchen hanging on the curtain above the sink. We put a bucket over it gently, and the bat moved as we nudged it, and it peacfully flew out.
Thanks for the support!

reply to post by samlf3rd


Some kid in this area (Central TX) recently found a bat in a schoolyard, it had rabies, the kid had to get the shots.

Painful and scary shots BTW. Bats carry rabies more than any other, skunks come close. Bats can be rabies carriers without dying or appearing very sick, makes them especially dangerous.

And make sure there's no Bats in the Belfry.......

For future reference, I have had bats in the house many times. If you are cold hearted, you can easily kill them with a tennis or badminton racket. They are not THAT fast. Otherwise, you can easily catch them with a towel without hurting them, and release them outside, where they can continue to eat their body weight in mosquitoes per day.

Don't worry John Candy and Dan Aykroyd got you covered

Suggest you turn off the inside lights and open the door wide if you can't take the tree outside. He'll find his own way out.

Originally posted by discostu123
are you in the uk? its illegal to disturb them here, you get like a 5k fine for killing them or disturbing the habitat...think you have to call DEFRA..??

I've never heard that, will look into it.
BUT, if one has flown into your house, he's not in his habitat, he's in yours, so I don't think you would get the fine.
Plus Pest Control must deal with this all the time with no such issues.

Originally posted by Chukkles

Originally posted by discostu123
are you in the uk? its illegal to disturb them here, you get like a 5k fine for killing them or disturbing the habitat...think you have to call DEFRA..??

I've never heard that, will look into it.
BUT, if one has flown into your house, he's not in his habitat, he's in yours, so I don't think you would get the fine.
Plus Pest Control must deal with this all the time with no such issues.

In the United Kingdom all bats are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Acts, and even disturbing a bat or its roost can be punished with a heavy fine.

Source wiki


OP I had to LOL at the chipmunk ornament!

Originally posted by samlf3rd
reply to post by Praetorius

 

That's what I told my buddy, he said gab a sheet and catch it.

If i were you, thats what id do And maybe call animal control