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As a nocturnal animal, you generally won’t see bats around until nighttime, or sometimes at dusk when the sun is going down. Occasionally a bat will make its way into your home and set up residence, and this can cause a number of problems for you and your family. So, what are the dangers behind bat infestations?
Typically it will only be a female bat that comes into your home because the males prefer to roost outside. However, once they have been bred, you may find a whole family of bats living in your home. A warm, dry environment is exactly when they need to safely raise their young.
Bats don’t often fly around inside the house, preferring to go outside to forage and hunt for food. Even still, wherever they are in your home, they can still affect everyone in the house if you don’t get rid of them. If you have a bat infestation, it can be difficult to get rid of them, but it is essential, especially with the health risks they can carry.
Dangers Behind Bat Infestations
Bat Guano
Bat guano is actually a bat’s excrement, and it can build up quite substantially in the house if you have an infestation of bats. The guano is the biggest health risk because of the types of diseases it can contain.
Once the guano has dried, the particles become airborne and can travel throughout the house. The health risk of guano is so great that you shouldn’t try and remove it yourself. Instead, a professional should be called in to remove it safely and carefully.
When there is a collection of guano, the smell can be quite strong and unpleasant. Getting rid of the guano doesn’t necessarily get rid of the foul odor, as it stains the wood.
Rabies
One of the dangerous diseases sometimes carried by bats is rabies. In fact, the risk is so great that the only other creature known to be a bigger risk of carrying rabies is the raccoon. There are several ways you can be infected with rabies through bats other than their bite. On that note, bats won’t normally bite humans unless they feel threatened. The other way you can catch rabies through bats is with their guano, urine, blood, and fur.
Rabies is almost always a fatal illness, and death can occur quite rapidly after the first signs of infection. The symptoms are very similar to the common flu, but as the disease progresses, the later symptoms can include:
- Fever
- Vomiting and nausea
- Headache
- Confusion
- Agitation
- Anxiety
- Hyperactivity
- Swallowing difficulty
- Excess salivation or ‘foaming at the mouth’
- Fear of water
- Insomnia
- Hallucinations
- Partial paralysis
Because of the high rate of fatalities with rabies infection, if there is any chance you have been exposed to bats, you should seek treatment. There is a vaccine that can be given to reduce the risk of developing rabies.
Histoplasmosis
The second dangerous disease carried by bats is histoplasmosis. The bat guano can contain spores of Histoplasma capsulatum which is a fungus, and causes histoplasmosis when the dried guano is inhaled. If you have a ventilation system in your home, this disease can spread throughout the house, putting everyone at risk.
Many people who have been infected with histoplasmosis will never develop any symptoms, completely unaware they are carrying the disease. However, for very young children or adults with a weakened immune system, histoplasmosis can be a very serious disease. If the disease does develop, the symptoms will usually appear anywhere between 3 and 17 days after they have been exposed to the fungus spores.
The most common symptoms include:
- Fever
- Headache
- Chills
- Cough
- Chest pain
- Joint pain
- Rash
Histoplasmosis is bad enough on its own, but it can cause some serious complications. These can include:
- Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
- Pericarditis
- Adrenal insufficiency
- Meningitis
Contaminated Water
For homes that rely on outdoor water collection, the risk of the water being contaminated by bat urine or feces is higher.
If there are areas of stagnant water around the house, keep clear of them in case they have been contaminated.
Slippery Floors
This may seem a bit silly, but you would be surprised how many people have slipped and fallen at home due to slippery floors from bat urine.
When you have a bat infestation, the urine can form collections on the floor, and you need to be meticulous about cleaning the floors. If you are planning on investigating a potential bat problem, even in the attic, make sure you check the floors for urine before you take a step.
Noise at Night
Because bats are active at night, the noise they make can seriously hamper your ability to get a good night’s sleep. As they flutter in and out of the attic they can make quite a bit of noise, and they also make a squeaking sound that can penetrate your peaceful night.
Bats always use a single entrance and exit point, and when the number of bats inside increases, the constant sounds that are made as they come and go can be very annoying.
Insulation Damage
As bats prefer to live in the attic, their constant deposits of excrement can damage the insulation. Once the insulation is damaged, holes can be created which lets the heat out.
It’s important to keep your home at a regular temperature, so this can be quite a challenge if the insulation is not completely intact. When the temperature drops, you would need to use other methods to warm your home and this can be an economic drain.
Interior Damage
The urine and guano from the bats will stain any wooden beams and furniture, and these can be incredibly difficult to repair. The more bats you have in the house, the worse the damage will be.
With an infestation, the sheer amount of guano produced by the bats can result in a lot of excess weight on the floor of the attic. Eventually, you could end up with cracks in the flooring, or worse still, a hole may form.
External Damage
Bats will often enter your home through openings such as vents, chimneys, soffits, or gaps in the roofing.
They can chew on the walls to help create openings if they really want to get into your house.
Other Parasites
It’s not just the bats you need to worry about when they invade your home; it’s the other parasites they bring with them. Bats often carry fleas and bat mites, and sometimes other types of insects.
The bat mites will bite humans, and once you have an infestation of these in the house it can be very difficult to get rid of them. This is large because of the constant coming and going of bats into the house and as new bats come in, so do their parasites.
Decomposing Bats
If a bat happens to die in the house, the body needs to be removed as quickly as possible. The smell of a decomposing bat mingled with the odor of the guano and urine can be very unpleasant.
Of course, there are also other issues with having a dead animal in the house, namely the flies that are attracted to the decaying body.
What to Do With Bats in the House
If you discover evidence of bats living in your house, the first thing you need to do is figure out how they are getting in. If you happen to live in an area that has warm weather all year round, you will find the bats are very reluctant to move on. But, if it is cold in winter, they may leave for the cooler months and return when it is warmer again.
To discover their entrance, check the outside of your house for any guano or urine stains. If you find an area with quite a bit of guano, then that is likely to be near the entrance the bats are using. Alternatively, watch from a distance at dusk or early evening and see if you can spot them coming in and out of your house. Normally they fly out in a group so it should be easy to see them.
Bats will normally enter through an area that is high above the ground level, so check your roof and eaves for any gaps. It doesn’t have to be a large gap, so you need to look closely. Also look for any broken windows or pieces of siding, broken bricks, or lose boards, as all of these could provide enough of a gap for the bats to enter through.
The only way to stop them from coming in and out is to seal off any gaps or holes so their entrance is blocked. However, you will need to get the bats removed first. The best way to do this is to use a professional, especially when it comes to handling or being close to the bat guano.
Once the bats have vacated, you can then take the necessary steps to close off and seal those areas they had been using to stop them from getting back in.
