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What to do if you find a bat in your house

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Be careful - if you come into contact with a bat

A wound inflicted by a bat can go unnoticed but should be taken seriously due to the small risk of contracting rabies. Anyone who has touched or been touched by a bat should:

  • Immediately wash the exposed skin with soap and water for 15 minutes
  • Contact the health line associated with your province, or a doctor to evaluate whether or not you should receive the rabies vaccination:
    • Quebec: Info-Santé - 8-1-1
    • Ontario: TeleHealth - 1-866-797-0000
    • Manitoba: Health Links - 1-888-315-9257
    • Saskatchewan: Health Links - 8-1-1
    • Alberta: Health Links - 8-1-1 (or 1-866-408-5465)
  • If possible, safely capture the bat (see steps below). The health care professional will be able to guide you where you need to take the bat to have it analyzed
  • If your pet has come into contact with a bat, you should contact your veterinarian.

How to capture a bat

  • Wear thick gloves whenever you are trying to capture a bat
  • Capture the bat under a solid container (e.g. yogurt container), then, slide a lid onto the container by lifting the container slightly off the surface.
  • Make sure air can get into the container, then place it in a box in an area where it is dark and quiet.
  • Disinfect your gloves
  • Wash your hand with warm water and soap
  • Depending on the circumstances, follow the instructions below regarding who you should contact.
If there is a bat in your house and you have not come into contact with it

In summer

  • Restrict the bat to a single room by closing the door(s) to the room that it is in
  • Open the windows, remove the screens, and turn off the lights
  • Leave the room, closing the door behind you. In most cases, the bat will leave out the window on its own. If it does not leave, wait for it to settle down
  • If the bat does not leave, wait for it to settle down, and then capture it using the protocol described above. After capturing the bat, it should be in a container inside a box.
  • If no people or pets have come into contact with the bat, you can release it outside. Open the container and put the box on its side at base of a tree. The bat will be able to climb up the tree and fly away.
  • Check on the bat approximately 24 hours later. It is important that you wait at least 24 hours to check on the bat because, bats are able to drop their body temperatures into a state called torpor where the bat may appear dead. In order to not confuse a torpid bat from a dead bat, allow the bat at least 24 hours to leave the box.
  • If the bat has died, contact the appropriate agency where you should report dead bats (see below).



In winter
If you find an active bat during the winter, it is because it has woken up from hibernation. It requires a lot of energy for a bat to awake from hibernation; therefore, they are very sensitive at this point in time. It is abnormal for bats to enter your house in the middle of winter. This is a potential sign that the bat is infected with the deadly bat disease, white-nose syndrome. As a result, please follow the instructions given below related to bats that are injured or dying.

If you find an injured, dying or dead bat
  • Try to capture the bat using the method described above
  • Next, place the box in a dark, quiet place
  • Across Canada, all dead or sick bats should be reported
    • Ontario: Contact the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative (CWHC) at 1-866-673-4781 or Natural Resources Information Centre at 1-800-667-1940
    • Manitoba: Contact the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative (CWHC) at 306-966-4815
    • Saskatchewan: Contact the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative (CWHC) at 306-966-4815
    • Alberta: Contact the Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs (MFFP) at 1-877-346-6763
    • Quebec: Contact Alberta Environment and Parks, Fish & Wildlife Office – 1-877-944-0313 (or visit http://aep.alberta.ca/about-us/contact-us/fish-and-wildlife-area-office-...)
  • For advice on what to do with and sick or injured bat, please contact your local rehabilitation centre after reporting the bat as directed above.
    Preventing bats from entering your house
    • Try to find the opening where the bat entered the house
    • Either caulk or add a screen to the point(s) of entry
    • Make sure you have functioning screens on all your doors and windows



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