Hey Mike, I have always found bats rather interesting creatures and have enjoyed seeing them flit about in the evening sky.
However, an experience in the fall of 2006 somewhat changed my feelings about them in my yard. I posted about it in my knit blog, here, http://knitnzu.com/?p=14. (there's a picture of the bat there) Our first thought was "get the dogs in the house" quickly followed by "get the camera so we can get some pictures". I felt badly for the bat... It was out and about in the afternoon, crawling around on the ground, and eating dirt. I later learned (from a bat biologist) that it was likely in the end stages of rabies. Because it was behaving so oddly, the vet recommended we get it tested, so we boxed it up (without actually touching it) and brought it in to the state testing lab. The lab confirmed that the bat was rabid. The whole experience was quite an education about the law around rabies. As a scientist of sorts I had lots of questions, but I kept getting told "this is the law" (regarding quarantine of the vaccinated dogs). To which I would say "yes, I understand and I will comply, but I still would like to know". What I wanted to know is if there is a titer test to determine if the dog had in fact been exposed to rabies, or what the level of rabies antibodies (or whatever is in the vaccine) in their blood might be. My animal control officer (ACO, a police officer here in Augusta Maine), like most animal control folks, is vaccinated against rabies. He said that he regularly gets a titer test, and when his antibody levels are low, he knows it is time for a booster. My ACO was informative and polite throughout the experience, but I cannot say the same for the state CDC. Realistically, if the dogs had in fact had the bat in their mouths (which we doubt but cannot prove), several of us humans should have gotten the rabies series. While the dogs were in the house and we were dealing with the bat, a friend (owner of one of the dogs) came over and the dogs greeted her in their typical enthusiastic fashion which includes lots of licking. We talked about this with our ACO, the vet, and one of our doctors, but nobody suggested that we pursue the rabies treatment (not that we wanted it, just trying to be safe). I wondered about dogs that run off lead, who may wander out of sight and play with/bite/capture/fight with a rabid animal without the owner's knowledge. My ACO said that's why we vaccinate them. I guess I still resent the enforced quarantine of my vaccinated dog. Bats are hugely interesting, and beneficial, and we have rescued several... But when they behave oddly, I am not so happy because rabies is so wickedly scary! Lisa St. Hilaire Information Manager Maine Natural Areas Program 17 Elkins Lane, 93 State House Station Augusta, ME 04333 207-287-8046 [EMAIL PROTECTED] -----Original Message----- From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of J. Michael Nolan Sent: Tuesday, October 07, 2008 4:29 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] (Rabid Bat show and tell) Mom brings rabid bat to school - ParentDish <http://www.parentdish.com/2008/10/04/mom-brings-rabid-bat-to-school/? This is obviously not a good situation. I suppose stories like this need to be told. I wish that writers would put things into context and really talk about the odds of getting rabies from all Mammals are. Generally pretty low and no I would not suggest that your ave. person handle a bat. Over the years I have been called MANY times by people to help them with a Bat in their house. Sadly they are not well understood and many are needlessley killed. If you have even the smallest crack, especially in an attic, etc., you will most likely have at least one roosting their over the winter. If you encounter one, my best advice is DON'T GET BIT. Ha. They, like many animals will gladly bite you. There is a low risk way to handle them. Also, if you really like Bats and I assumed mistakenly in the past that most Biology Educators do. This is no knock at the Profession, but have been shocked over time at how many Bio Teachers are afraid of Bats, Spiders, Scorpions, Snakes.....well, you get my point. You don't know how fast these thoughts are passed on to MOST of your Students. I have also seen the kid, who on the first day of school might pass out over a Snake, but by the end of the semester....you can't get the darn, harmless thing out of their hands during class and even after school. That is a very gratifying thing to see happen. Bat Conservation International in Texas is a great organization. You can buy Bat houses, etc. from them. Their Director or, at least the person who started the organization did one amazing video on Bats from Barro Colorado Island, located in the Panama Canal. This sp. of Bat feeds on Frogs, and is quite able to DISCRIMINATE between Frogs that are toxic and Frogs that are not. It is an amazing piece of footage, and was part of the collection that I sent to Patsye Peebles in Louisiana last week. Yes, our groups do go here and Guido Berguido, who was at last years STANYS convention (one of the finest Naturalist Guides in Central America) usually has a nice presentation from a local Researcher at the Smithsonian Research Station located here. It costs 75.00 pp for the day. I met Guido some years ago, and new at that point, we had something very special. I have an article published in Biotropica, much of which is about Guido's work in Panama's Darien. If you would like a copy, pls let me know. I know that Costa Rica is popular, not only for good reasons, but also HEAVY marketing. We have some very knowledgeable travelers that much prefer Panama. I can give you my 10 reasons why I would take a group to Panama FIRST and it really has little to do with Guido. Thanks for listening. Mike Nolan ---------- If we are on another line or away from the phone, please leave your number, best time to return your call and/or your e-mail address. After hours and weekend phone appointments are available upon request. Sincerely, J. 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