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Is It Safe To Catch A Bat In Your House?

Small brown bat resting on white insulation material beside a wooden wall.
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If you find an uninvited bat in your home, do not fret! Many make the mistake of trying to catch a bat, but this is unwise. Bats can carry disease, which may cause harm to humans.

Do not try to handle a bat problem on your own. Contact CP Bat Mitigation for help getting rid of an unwanted bat in your house. Not only will we get rid of the bats safely and humanely, but we will help you to keep them out for good!

Keep reading to learn if it is safe to catch a bat in your home and how to secure bat removal from your living space. And no, screaming and running around wild is not going to help the situation! Remain calm and read on. 

Yikes! There Is A Bat In The Home. How Did It Get In? 

Most likely, the bat entered your home by mistake through various entry points. Female bats can make room in the attic or other dark areas of the house to have their pups. The other possible scenario is a young pup, just learning to fly who does not know how to make its exit.

You may first see the bat flying in a U-shaped pattern. They tend to fly high and then dip down toward the center of the room. Bats can hide behind curtains or interior doors or even in plants.

Because bats can hang in high places, it can make it even more difficult to catch a bat on your own.

The goal of a control specialist is to get the bat out safely, without causing harm. If you try to catch a bat in your home, you can risk not only causing injury to yourself but to the young bat. 

What Are The First Steps If I Find A Bat In My Home?

The first step to take is to keep children and pets away from the bat. Pets may be alarmed and attack the bat. If this happens, be sure to get the animal tested for rabies as soon as possible, even if you do not know if the animal was bit.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, rabies is a viral disease transmitted by mammals. Bats are known carriers. Rabies affects the central nervous system and, if not treated, will harm the brain, resulting in death. Most of the time, you vaccinate pets against rabies, but it is still best to keep them away from bats.

The next step is to isolate the bat in a room if possible. If there is a window, you can leave it open. Shut off the lights so the bat can calm down, and the bat may fly out of the window to safety.

Never try to trap the bat, catch the bat, or try to release it out the window on your own. You may find suggestions such as trapping it in a jar, putting on work gloves, or trying to slide a piece of cardboard under to trap and release the bat on your own.

It may work to trap the bat using this method, but it can result in you getting scratched or bitten. Since there are bat removal services available, it is always best to use those resources versus trying to catch a bat on your own.

If you are bitten or scratched by a bat, wash the wound well and always seek medical attention immediately. 

The Bat Is Out! How Do We Keep Them Out? 

So the bat removal service was successful, now how can you prevent bats from coming back?

Likely the company will need to make sure there are no additional bat pups in the home.

Often the female mom has made home, and if you found one, there may be more. The company will need to remove the whole litter and keep them in an appropriate environment until they are ready to survive independently.

It may be helpful to try to identify possible entry points in the roof. The bat removal company may be able to help monitor the bats to determine where this occurs. You can then take steps to seal those points properly.

Once the bats have been effectively removed, and the entry points are sealed, it is important to clean any bat droppings (bat guano). The droppings also carry a risk of disease and illness, including respiratory risk.

Bat droppings not only cause disease but can damage the home and have a strong odor. Leftover urine can also be a risk of infection. Always seek assistance to clean the house thoroughly and safely after an infestation.

If you are concerned about them getting in again, you may want to consider building them a home of their own.

Some people even build a little bat home for the bats to live in their yard. Bats play an important role in the ecosystem and will help keep bugs away. If there are many in the wilderness near you, it may be an option to consider.

Other Reasons Not To Try To Catch A Bat On Your Own

Not only is it unsafe to catch a bat on your own, but it is illegal. In many areas of the United States, they are protected by law because of the gift they give to our ecosystem.

Bats eat insect pests, reducing the need for pesticides. It is found they eat up to 70% of their weight in insects. Essentially, we need them to keep the world balanced.

Sadly, bats are on the decline in our country. Over half of the bat species in the United States are rare or endangered.

All the more reason to use a bat control company to catch a bat correctly to release it where it belongs!

Contact The Professionals To Catch A Bat In Your Home

We know you are independent and want to do things on your own, but catching a bat shouldn’t be one of them! Take the worry off your plate and contact CP Bat Mitigation to assist in removing Bats from your Omaha home.

We will help you get them out and keep them out so you can live bat free!

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