03/16/2015
How to remove e flying bat from the house.
A friend recently had a bat enter the house through a chimney and was pretty freaked out. Not to panic!
The bat is an accidental traveler. It does not want to be in the house or, in many cases, chased by shrieking giants with brooms and tennis rackets. The goal is to find a calm and peaceful ending to their intrusion. Once you are aware of the flying bat, the goal is to get the bat into a room where a door or large window without a screen can be opened. The first job is to put pets like dogs or cats into another room and shut the door. They do not need to be part of the festivities. There is also a small chance that the bat could have rabies, so any contact is discouraged. You also do not need the inside pet running out the open door.
Open the door or window in the chosen room and turn off the lights except for something very dim. Turn off outside lights that are near the open door or window. If an air conditioning unit is running near to the chosen door or window, turn that off, too. Bats use echolocation and not sight to navigate. Close off other rooms by shutting doors or using a sheet and push pins to block the opening. Even though the sheet is very flimsy, to the bat it seems solid. All these activities need to take place in almost complete silence. The more screaming and shouting, the more upset the bat and humans become.
Keep narrowing the flight area with two people holding opposite ends of a sheet up at arm’s length until the bat has nowhere left to fly except through the open door. When people swing tennis rackets or brooms at the bat, it may become aggressive and swoop toward the person’s head. The bat is trying to save its own life. It does not want to get tangled in your hair or have a collision with a large, heavy object like your 8-pound head. If it is necessary to pick up the bat, be extremely careful. Always use heavy leather gloves.
Once the bat has left, close open windows and doors, turn on lights and release the pets. A better solution is to put a plastic container over the top of the bat. Then, slide a piece of cardboard slowly between the bat under the container and the surface that the bat is clinging to. The containerized bat can be removed safely to the great outdoors.
Visit the State of Michigan website for more information on bats and rabies.
You and the bat will be grateful of this peaceful conclusion to the accidental invasion. Bats are champions of feeding on night-flying insects. Now everyone can go back to what they want to do.
