I found a bat in my garden today, and had to move him into a tree outside of my yard to prevent him from being mauled by the dog (I used thick leather gloves, of course).
It got me wondering, though - I know that despite their reputation, bats only account for a very small number of rabies cases, but how would bats get rabies in the first place anyway?
They’re so small and light, I can’t imagine how they’d get away from any animal that was in contect with them long enough to infect them with rabies (even if it’s only for a split second).
I also can’t see how a creature so tiny would even live long enough to pass on the virus.
I’ve seen both dogs and cats catch bats only to have the bat escape. Cats are particularly noted for this since they play with the animal before killing it. The bats I’ve rescued from cats never seem to have any injuries at all and fly off quite happily after being given a few minutes to recover. If the cat were infected the bat would go on to groom its fur and pick up the cat slobber and the virus it contains.
Once rabies finds its way into a bat colony it would then be self sustaining, at least temporarily.