Bat out during the day, stay away
One found lying on the ground recently tested positive for rabies
Bats play a key role in the ecosystem. But even though only a small percentage of them carry rabies, officials say to take care around the flying mammals.
A bat testing positive for rabies was found in the area recently; a few were found last year.
Sutter-Yuba Mosquito & Vector Control District manager Michael Kimball said people should be mindful around bats for a number of reasons.
“You have to take precautions around bats,” Kimball said. “For parents: Tell kids if they see a bat during the day, there’s a possibility it’s sick and to never handle a bat.”
He said in the rare cases in which a bat does bite someone, he or she should carefully try and keep the bat for testing.
“If you’ve been bit and have the bat, it can be tested for rabies,” Kim- ball said. “We recommend wearing gloves and using a coffee can to capture the bat, but when in doubt, call animal control to help.”
Kimball said only a small percentage of bats actually has rabies – about 6 percent – which makes the chances of contracting rabies from a bat bite slim.
Yuba County’s Health Administrator Homer Rice agreed that being bat aware is the best way to avoid contact.
“Don’t play with the bats because if they’re on the ground, they’re most likely sick,” Rice said. “About 80 percent of bats found on the ground are rabid.”
He said humans can only get rabies through a bite.
“The saliva is how the virus is passed – a scratch from a bat can also get saliva in it and cause problems,” Rice said. “They have very tiny teeth and can bite a person, and the person might not even know it, so you have to be careful.”
The Centers for Disease Control website states there are typically only one or two human rabies cases per year and the most common source is from bats.
“There are two different issues,” Rice said. “One – rabies isn’t a common virus and two – it can only be given to someone by a bite from an infected animal.”
He said there is a series of shots that can help protect people against rabies but it’s expensive and is mostly recommended for people who regularly work with animals that may have rabies.
“In California, most of the rabid animals are bats,” Rice said. “In other parts of the country, skunks and raccoons more commonly carry the virus.”
Even though the chances of a bat encounter or bite are slim, Rice and Kimball said there are humane ways to keep bats out of attics and other places around the house.
“The majority of bats are protected – either as a threatened species or species of concern and the best way to get them out of a home is using exclusion methods,” Kimball said. “You don’t want to kill them, you want to exclude them from your home.”
He said to go outside at dusk and look for small holes under the eaves where bats may be getting into attics and nesting.
“If you can get your little finger into the hole, the bat can get in and out,” Kimball said. “You seal all the holes but one and build a trap door made of heavy plastic with a door, and slowly every bat will leave the area.”
Kimball said the winter is the best time to work on bat exclusion but there are professional services that can execute the bat exclusion process from a home.
“The winter is the best time to do it because there are no pups, or baby bats, present,” Kimball said. “If you seal up your home with the pups, you’ll kill them and they’ll be stuck in your house.”
33, of the 1500 block of East Park Avenue, Marysville, was arrested by the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office at 3:40 a.m. May 12 on suspicion of reporting a false bomb threat, possession of ammunition by a prohibited person, and transporting for sale a controlled substance. He was booked into Yuba County Jail.
DUI ARRESTS
35, of the 5500 block of Diane Way, Marysville, was arrested by the Marysville Police Department at 11:35 p.m. May 12 on 10th Street. He was booked into Yuba County Jail.
22, of Biggs, was arrested by the California Highway Patrol at 12:34 a.m. May 12 on Highway 70 near Plumas Lake. He was booked into Yuba County Jail.