Would bats in the attic bother you?

[lollygiggler]

Thinking of selling our house soon. We have a colony of bats in the attic. They cause no trouble but would this put you off as a buyer?

Explanation of the above. I am particularly keen on encouraging our native species even at a detriment to myself. I am definitely odd in that sense!

No way I would buy a house with bats (or any animals) living in it.

We have lots of bats near us and I love watching them but do not want them in my roof. Noise, droppings and the inability to use the space would 100% put me off buying.

We have bats in the roof of our summer house, you see them coming in/out, but you don’t hear them when you’re in the house. They only see to poo directly under their roost, so we have two shallow plastic trays under their roost that we empty twice a year.

Have you had to modify the house/attic in any way to stop the bats getting into the main house? Have you been advised to get rabies vaccines in case of contact with them?

My philosophy is that the wildlife was here first (my garden is a fox playground, and they are most welcome) but I’m also really scared of rabies, so I do think bats would put me off buying somewhere.

Yes. Get pest control in and get it sorted.

What if you accidentally block the entry/exit points and claim plausible deniability (but who checks these things anyway ? It’s not as if there is a monthly bat check of all lofts?)

You can’t do that with bats. It’s illegal to kill, harm, or disturb them, or destroy where they’re living. No pest control company is going to do anything.

Yes because they poo a lot. You wouldn’t be able to store anything in the attic.

OP, out of interest do you ever go and shovel the poo up? Or just let it build up?

Any work to your roof, or attic space could be severely curtailed. I’ve know people have to leave part of roof uninsulated, use particular ‘bat tiles’ when repairing roof to allow them in and out A it can be costly.

ask for a bat survey to be done? Apparently a breeding family are a big issue for works “bachelors” not so much.

but yes, shit everywhere.

Before I found out that there are such things as bat bugs, it wouldn't have put me off.

Another rabbit hole for you @lollygiggler sorry.

Out NDN had them, i had no idea certain breeds of bats migrated. The bat bugs don't survive long if they can't feed from the bats, they are similar to bed bugs apparently and do bite humans for a feed.

OP- did YOU buy the house knowing the bats were there or did they move in after you bought it? Have you all have rabies vaccines?

Not at all. They are fascinating creatures.

Wouldn't even view it!!!

It’s an Archers reference. If you ARE Carol Tregoran sadly, you’re dead

One of our bats, being held by the Natural England chap who came to check on them while our roof was being done. They’re gorgeous creatures

We have them, the loft isn’t used, it’s an old listed building, but we have a second loft area,

we can also hear scratching and they often come in the house via chimney/fire place, it’s rhe babies, as they crawl away or fall off their mums tums

the previous owners didn’t tell us, but we’d still have bought,

Someone I know only got planning permission for a house on a plot of land if they also built a separate brick bat house in the garden. Maybe you could try that and see if you could tempt them out the house?

I do love bats and we have them every evening in our garden. I have no idea where they roost….not in my house though 😁

I like bats but I don’t want them in my house tbh.

I'd love it. I would also be fairly certain that many of the people running a mile also have bats in their roof, but likely crevice dwellers like pipistrelles, rather than the brown long eared which are a bit more obvious.

I love Bats ( and all other wildlife).
However, I would be really scared of catching Lyssa virus/rabies from them so it would be a no from me.

Wouldn’t put us off, but then we have 4 maternity roosts in the eves of the house, and other bat roosts in outbuildings.

Being an old house we quite often find the odd lost juvenile bat in the house - to the extent we have a box prepared as a ‘bat hotel’ for them to stay in until they are released in the evening. Highest occupancy this year I think was 5 bats one day! Lost bat season is only a few weeks, and being maternity roosts the bats are only with us for a few months.

Is it a maternity roost over summer or do they hibernate? I would love one and fit webcams when they were away / use plastic sheeting.
I would see a home with a bat colony as a definite plus, love watching wee pips in the garden.

It would freak me out. Not the bats specifically, but just the thought that anything was living in my loft. I’d be worried about poo, repairs and so on.