Rabies

[HuckleberryBlackcurrant]

We found a bat in our spare room today. We live in the US. It is currently triple bagged in our refrigerator waiting to be sent to the health authority for analysis for rabies. We won't know if the bat is rabid until Wednesday. We are terrified. We have no idea when or how it got in. We have 2 kids and I am 37 weeks pregnant.

Apparently rabies vaccinations can cost thousands of dollars which we really can't afford right now .

If you believe in the power of prayer please send one up for us. We are very very scared.

Please do tell us how you think they test for rabies?

Hint - it involves dissecting the brain.

An American tik toker (KC Davis) I watch had a bat fly about in her room while she was making a video. Her children had to have rabies shots because they were napping in the next room and as they also didn't know how long the bat had been in the house she had to get one too. You don't always know you've been burden when asleep as it can just look like a tiny scratch.

Op isn't being ridiculous at all.

Seems most people on MN are UK centric with little appreciation of how deathly serious Rabies is. Fuck bats if they are killing people.

This thread is fascinating, I had no idea how awful rabies was. Obviously you know its bad but 100% death rate is terrifying. We are very lucky in the UK. I hope those results come quickly OP

FYI- if your cat brings in a dead bat or you find a dead bat in the UK. DO NOT pick it up without very, thick leather gloves on though. It may not be dead! If it is, call the number and they will send a long tube thing to put it in and send it off for testing.

Bats: The Bat Conservation Trust encourages the submission of dead bats to a programme run by the Animal & Plant Health Agency that helps monitor UK bats for the spread of a European strain of rabies virus affecting bats. Call the BCT helpline (0345 1300 228) who will send you a kit.

Good luck, OP. I hope the result comes back negative. That must be genuinely alarming.

Rabies is fucking terrifying actually!

Nonchalance is of no benefit when tens of thousands of people die from it every year, and many of them are young children.

OP get the shot, it's recommended anyway.

When I lived in Australia I found a bat on the ground once. It was clearly not very well and for a fleeting moment I thought about picking it up. Then I caught myself and called the bat rescue instead. The bat was taken and tested for Lyssavirus (an Aussie version of rabies). It was positive. I must have had about three phone calls from the rescue service and another two from a public health nurse, all to check that I really, genuinely, honestly hadn't touched it or been nearer than the 4 metres or so I said I had. These were professionals but the concern in their voices was audible, as was their relief when it turned out I hadn't placed myself at risk. Having read this thread, I wonder if my UK accent made them more worried, given that rabies just isn't a thing here (I grew up somewhere where there is rabies, so I fortunately did know about the risks).

There's a passage in To Kill a Mockingbird where a rabid dog is on the prowl. The fear of the onlookers is palpable.

I'm in the UK and as a child somehow found out about rabies and was absolutely terrified of it because it is as close to 100% as you can get ( I believe only person has ever been known to survive?) so my thoughts are with you OP.

And I feel for the poor bat as well, but sometimes there is no choice.

You seriously need to calm down, unless it bit anyone (which presumably you would have mentioned).

In the UK, you would be committing an offence by handling it. Putting it in 3 plastic bags and in the fridge seems a tad excessive (mean).

I think there are slightly more than 1, but it's still essentially a 100% death disease (post symptoms) because the 'cure' wasn't successful for almost all cases where it had been used.

I didn't even even know about it until a Rabies awareness video popped up on YouTube. It's very sad that so many children die of it. I wish I hadn't seen some of those videos tbh because you are essentially watching dead people. It's vile but certainly made me aware. I'll be vaccinating myself and the family if I ever visit certain countries.

@Jongleterre Do you understand how awful rabies is?

Read this:

https://www.tumblr.com/that-spider-witch/676451693800587264/everyone-should-read-this-a-very-important-psa?source=share

How terrifying@HuckleberryBlackcurrant . Waiting for the results is so stressful and scary, I hope you get good news on Tuesday. Please update us when you hear.

@MrsSkylerWhite

As I mentioned previously, we don't have any evidence that it bit us. The point is we don't know how long it was in the house and we were advised that a bite may not be noticeable if the bat is small (which it was).

We are not in the UK, we are in the US and were advised to bag it up in this way by the health authority. This is their protocol for handling a dead bat. It's in the fridge because it's 38°C here and it would be going off by the time the health dept offices open in Monday.

I'm Australian and didn't even know about lyssavirus till I googled it, only that we don't have rabies proper here. Very glad you kept away from that bat!

I remember that scene in To Kill a Mockingbird, though more from the film than the book.

What an idiotic comment.

Isnt it illegal to kill them in the USA?

So did you kill it?

If not I hardly think you need to worry about finding a dead bat.

If you are in the US you are legally required to have health insurance. If you are living in the US as an expat then you would have health insurance through the employer.

You rock up to the ER, pay your copayment and start the rabies series.

Honestly while not a pleasant experience it is what it is.

Yes rabies is a thing here. That’s not news to anyone, surely. Better to treat for it as a precaution than the alternative.

Killing bats may be illegal and often not necessary but nobody has gone to jail in the US for killing one.

I meaner the only way to test for rabies is to examine the brain, so the poor creature’s fate is sealed either way.

I would like to know what poor sod went through the symptoms so it could be recorded.
I hope your results come back negative.

Sadly a lot.

there was a recent case of a young woman who recovered from it. But the odds are definitely not in the a favor of anyone that contracts it.

Anyone doubting how awful it is - an old 1950's health film of a man from infection to death.

This.

Always assume you have been bitten. I can't believe the lack of awareness about rabies.

That's why advice is to leave the poor things alone. Open the window, leave the room, shut the door and if it doesn't leave on its own, try to coax it out after dark by turning on lights. You do not go near it, even to kill it.

It is illegal to kill, disturb or injure an endangered bat, even if it is in your house. Ignorance of the law is no defence. In fact, far from an outcry they tend to make examples of people in this situation to avoid more being killed or the spread of rabies by people who are stupid enough to get near the animals.