Way OT - bat bite

[challenger]

Ok boys & men, settle in.
I walked out of my shop Thursday and saw a small creature flopping on the grass. I first though it was a bird but it turned out to be a tiny bat. We've all seen these soaking up mosquitoes in the evenings. I went to it and it couldn't fly away. I think it had a broken arm (wing?). Of course I had to investigate it and, in doing so, it bit the pad of my thumb. I felt it's needle sharp teether and it let go. I decided to apply a lot of pressure toward the top of my thumb to see if it broke the skin which it didn't. Working, dominant hand, thumb pads are pretty thick IMO.
I tell this to a good friend, the following day, and he freaks! He's saying I gotta get checked out. I did some internet research and became informed that ill be dead within a month give or take a few decades. I hesitantly called my MD and told him I was bit by a bat. After he composed himself he said that, if the bat didn't break the skin, i shouldn't worry about it.
I have zero symptoms other than I feel like my eye teeth getting longer
Anyone think I should be concerned? About the bat bite that is..

 

[Booze Daily]

Can you still see your reflection in a mirror?

 

[GregSY]

Bats are know to carry rabies, so more than becoming a vampire that is the concern. But if it didn't break the skin.....the odds are very low. I usually only give gynecological advice to young ladies, but in this case...I guess I'd find out how hard it is to get tested for rabies. If it's easy, do it. If not....wait a month and see.

 

[eKretz]

If it didn't break the skin, I'd guess you're good to go. I'd rather hope that you washed your hands well after dispatching that pint-sized menace. Other than that, not much to do, I shouldn't think.

And: is that "Wot" supposed to be an OT tag? I sure didn't read it that way.

 

[projectnut]

I would definitely get checked out. I was bitten by our family cat that turned out to have rabies. In this case he took a good chunk out of my leg. I ended up getting an initial dose of anti-rabies medication (some type of horse serum) and then a series of rabies shots. About 2/3 of the way through the series of shots I developed a severe case of hives. They stopped that series and started me on a second formula. About 2/3 of the way through that series they determined it was the original medication I was allergic to. They stopped that series and started all over on the first series.

Through the course of 3 months, I had over 60 rabies shots plus those to keep the hives under control. I had to go back for an annual booster every year for 5 years. I'm fine now except for the urge to howl at the full moon and an unquenchable desire for a bloody Mary late in the evening.

 

[dalmatiangirl61]

From the CDC website "Several tests are necessary to diagnose rabies ante-mortem (before death) in humans; no single test is sufficient. Tests are performed on samples of saliva, serum, spinal fluid, and skin biopsies of hair follicles at the nape of the neck. Saliva can be tested by virus isolation or reverse transcription followed by polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Serum and spinal fluid are tested for antibodies to rabies virus. Skin biopsy specimens are examined for rabies antigen in the cutaneous nerves at the base of hair follicles."

I hear spinal taps are excruciatingly painful, and we all know how reliable PCR tests are, but it would also probably really suck to die from rabies. Your call!

 

[eKretz]

Might be able to call DNR and get the bat tested...

 

[GregSY]

This is why the only animal I will touch is a cat. The rest, NFW. All risk, no gain. The biggest mystery of all is people who touch snakes. You touch a snake, you're just asking for a painful death. I'll touch a snake from many feet away using my high velocity lead spitter. That's it.

 

[Gordon Heaton]

Problem 1: rabies has a lengthy incubation period
Problem 2: treatment after onset of symptoms does not work, and at that point it is always fatal in humans

If you can't get the bat tested, you better be damn sure the bite didn't break the skin!

 

[Glug]

I don't think there is a test you can take, there is no cure once symptoms begin. If you get it you die a horrible death. You need to get the bat tested. Often they give the first shot while awaiting the animal test result. Rabies can also lie dormant and resurface later.

CDC: "It is also possible, but rare, for people to get rabies from non-bite exposures, which can include scratches, abrasions, or open wounds that are exposed to saliva or other potentially infectious material from a rabid animal." The bat teeth are tiny, razor sharp and bites often can't be felt.

There is the question of how widespread rabies is in the local bat population. That would give you some idea of risk.

PS. If you don't get the bat tested and don't get the shots, can I have first dibs on your tools and machines?

 

[steve45]

Only about 1/10 of 1% of bats are infected with rabies, so the odds are in your favor. However, searching for info it turns out that bat bites are so small that they may not bleed. Skin contact and scratches can spread infection. I'd suggest you do some internet research and decide the best course of action to take.

We had some bats living at our lakehouse some years ago. Never got bit or anything, but I certainly looked into how to get rid of them.

 

[mattthemuppet]

And: is that "Wot" supposed to be an OT tag? I sure didn't read it that way.

I was trying to figure out what a wot-bat was.

 

[tdmidget]

If it didn't break the skin, I'd guess you're good to go. I'd rather hope that you washed your hands well after dispatching that pint-sized menace. Other than that, not much to do, I shouldn't think.

And: is that "Wot" supposed to be an OT tag? I sure didn't read it that way.

You've been around here long enough to know that WOT means "Way off topic". He should have capitalized all of it I guess.

 

[eKretz]

You've been around here long enough to know that WOT means "Way off topic". He should have capitalized all of it I guess.

Right as I was wondering why there wasn't an OT tag, that occurred to me. Prior to that I was thinking "some kind of weird word-play on wombat? WTF?!" Yeah, should have been capitalized. Edited.

 

[Joe Michaels]

We co-exist with bats. The bats established a hang-out under the eaves of our house in one specific location. We like the bats because they eat insects such as mosquitos and gnats. Ordinarily, our only interaction with the bats is to see them in flight at twilight. One night, a bat did get into our house. My wife chased the bat into my office and closed the door. Bat was now captive in my office. I got a pair of TIG welding gloves and opened the door and entered my office. The bat landed on the floor after flying wildly around the room. It had folded its wings. I was able to gently pick it up and hold it so its head stuck up out of my closed hand. The bat opened his mouth and showed us his teeth, let out some sounds, but did not flail or struggle. My wife and I agreed the little bat was downright cute. My wife opened my office window and took out the screen. I tossed the bat out into the night. My office window looks out on 70-some acres of woods and my blacksmith shop. In the light from the window, we saw the bat spread its wings, seemingly in slow motion. We could see a tracery of veins and sinew highlighted by the light from the window as the wings are quite thin. The bat gathered air under its wings and with slow wing strokes, flew off into the night. My wife asked me what specie of bat we had visiting us. I replied: 'a little brown bat', thinking of a childhood song from my very early years. Wife wanted to know the specie, so I looked it up. Turns out I was correct, the specie is known as "the little brown bat". Wife then decided to hang a name on the bat, but we did not know its gender. Obvious choices for names were Igor and Natasha. I like the critters, but I made sure to put on a pair of gloves before handling Igor/Natasha. Some of our friends built bat houses out of scrap rough-cut lumber. Bats are nature's own bug zapper. My wife and I agreed that seeing the bat take flight was reminiscent of Bela Lugosi in some old vampire themed movie.

There was a publication called "Engineering News Record". It was a magazine devoted to the heavy construction industry, articles about ongoing large projects, listings of contracts to be put out for bid, and similar. I recall laughing hard when I read that the US Department of Defense was having a 'synthetic bat guano plant' built. Bat guano is the polite term for 'bat shit'. In the sailing ship days, ships went from the US to Chile and similar locales to bring back cargoes of 'nitrates'. Nitrates were bird and bat shit. The nitrates were used in the production of gunpowder and other explosives as well as a component in some fertilizers. Evidently, bat guano was still (as of the 1970's) in demand by the US Department of Defense. We kidded around that no sane self respecting engineer could work on that project and truthfully tell his family and friends that he was working on a government funded synthetic batshit plant.

I did wind up having to sing that childhood song "Hi Said the Little Leather Wing Bat" as my wife wanted to hear it. I had not thought of that song in at least 65 years. Wife likes the song, and we both like having bats around our property. As cute as some wild animals may appear, the best thing is to let them go about their business if they are not harming you or damaging anything. We coexist with a variety of wildlife including black bears who appear on our lawn now and then. About the only wildlife I have a problem with are coyotes. Too many and they go after house pets and livestock as well as the deer herd. I do not hesitate to shoot coyotes. Bats, at least to us, are entertaining to see in flight, are otherwise inoffensive and helpful little critters.

 

[eKretz]

I watch bats fly around in my yard all the time in the summer, eating skeeters. They don't bother me, I don't bother them. That said, if one bit me, it would not be around much longer.

 

[Bill D]

Even if the bite did not break the skin are you 100% sure a flea, mosquito, lice etc did not jump from bat to you? If you see a bat or raccoon in daytime it is safe assume it is rabid. Thick welding gloves or a long handle shovel are the best way to handle them.
Get the bat tested for rabies. For the local health board to know if not for you. If that is not possible assume you got bit by something that was carrying rabies. Start the treatment. Treatment is not as bad as it used to be. I heard one boy got rabies and survived with treatment.
Treatment is now like only four shots one week apart each. About 10% of what it used to be.
BilL D

 

[Bill D]

I was surprised to learn recently that UV lights for bug zappers do not attract bugs that eat people. Mosquito's etc are not attracted to UV light. Something like 99.7% of the bugs killed by UV bug zappers cause no problems for people.
A bat house with one bat will do far more to kill mosquitos in your yard.
BilL D

 

[Bill D]

A little google fu says the odds of a healthy bat in north Carolina having rabies is about 3%. odds of one on the ground in daylight is much, much higher.
BilLD

 

[Flail]

Challenger, you got bad advice.

Most states have an on call person for their health dept even on weekends. Will wager they recommend rabies immunizations 100% for a bite.

Don’t know if you can access this medscape article: https://www.medscape.com/s/viewarticle/991240#vp_2

While the odds are good about not contracting rabies, the odds of living are almost non-existent if you do: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/jeanna-giese-rabies-survivor/

Lastly: https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/exposure/animals/bats.html