# Things not to do with a dead bat **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 1, 2009, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370 "2009-06-01T16:38:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/21 "2009-06-02T14:47:44Z")
> [@Peak Banana](#): > > The broom flew through her window? Was there a witch attached to it? I wanna know how she managed to jam it down the toilet, personally. That’s one hell of a power-flush. ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/22 "2009-06-02T16:00:39Z")
Damn, talk about a timely thread for me. I need advice on this. A neighbour’s son was helping my husband with his vegetable garden yesterday, and when he went for something in the garage, a bat flew up at him. Didn’t bite or scratch or anything. My husband tends to leave the garage door open too much-- a source of some discord between us, as the garage is an extension of the house, with a communicating door. What should I do? Now I’m scared to go and get stuff from the freezer in the garage. Is the fact that the bat is in our garage a sign that it was disoriented due to an illness like rabies? If I leave the garage door open for a while at night, how likely is it to leave? ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/23 "2009-06-02T18:21:28Z")
> [@MoodIndigo1](#): > > Damn, talk about a timely thread for me. I need advice on this. > > A neighbour’s son was helping my husband with his vegetable garden yesterday, and when he went for something in the garage, a bat flew up at him. Didn’t bite or scratch or anything. My husband tends to leave the garage door open too much-- a source of some discord between us, as the garage is an extension of the house, with a communicating door. > > What should I do? Now I’m scared to go and get stuff from the freezer in the garage. Is the fact that the bat is in our garage a sign that it was disoriented due to an illness like rabies? If I leave the garage door open for a while at night, how likely is it to leave? You could try leaving the garage door open, but it may not have come in that way to begin with. And you wouldn’t know whether it flew out unless you sat there and watched. Or you could end up with the ‘Big Chill’ effect - try to let one out and two fly in! We had a bat that would come in the louvered vent at the top of our garage loft and use it as a roost. There was a screen over the vent that was intended to keep little flying things out, but it was soft and flexible, and the bat would come in and sleep in it, like a little hammock. We just waited until dusk when he was out hunting and replaced the soft mesh with hard metal mesh, so he can’t roost in there anymore. Check for bat crap on the floor of the garage - it looks a lot like mouse crap. That would be a sign that there’s a bat in the garage - if there’s a lot of crap in one spot, he may be roosting in there. If you find a concentrated spot, look up - that’s will be where it is roosting. If you don’t want to deal with evicting him yourself, there are companies that will do it for you. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/24 "2009-06-02T18:30:49Z")
> [@romansperson](#): > > If you don’t want to deal with evicting him yourself, there are companies that will do it for you. [This one](http://www.humanewildlifecontrol.com/) is in Montreal and is certified by [Bat Conservation International](http://www.batcon.org/) as a humane wildlife control professional. ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/25 "2009-06-02T18:50:11Z")
**romansperson** and **Anne Neville** : Thanks for the very helpful feedback. I’m going to check the garage floor and call Humane Removal Services. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/26 "2009-06-02T19:15:33Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > But the vaccine might give your dog autism! It’s all a cover up by the pharmaceutical industry! I’m snerking all over myself here… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Weird\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@The\_Weird\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Weird_One)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/27 "2009-06-02T19:58:02Z")
I love bats! They have the cutest little ugly faces. It is to my eternal regret that they’re impractical pets. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/28 "2009-06-02T20:31:03Z")
> [@The\_Weird\_One](#): > > I love bats! They have the cutest little ugly faces. It is to my eternal regret that they’re impractical pets. ☹ My brother’s GF had a pet bat. It was completely practical as a pet, and a lot of fun, too. You could play catch with him, and bats purr like cats when they are happy. 😃 In line with the theme of this thread … she was so attached to this bat, that she _smuggled it into England_ when they moved there - bats spend much of their time sleeping, she just put it is a sock and the sock in her pocket and walked through customs. God knows what they would do to you if they catch you smuggling a bat. But that isn’t all. She was so attached to it, that when the poor thing died in England, she froze its little body and smuggled it _back to Canada_ for burial in a thermos. I have no idea what the authorities would think of someone smuggling a _dead_ bat. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/29 "2009-06-02T20:34:10Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Thousands, if not 10 thousand cavers in the USA, make hundreds of thousands of visits to caves every year, most of these caves having a bat here or there, if not a bunch of them. Over the past few decades I am pretty sure NONE of them have developed rabies. If it aint none, its a damn small number. I’m a caver, and the big difference is that the majority of cavers don’t sleep in the cave. A bat is trouble in a room if the occupant is sleeping, and especially so if the occupant is an infant. You can’t be sure of how long you’ve been exposed, and there’s a chance of infection without a bite or visible bite. This happened to my family, and we decided to get vaccinated. It’s not the painful gut shots it once was - just a series of injections. If you’ve had allergy shots, it’s very similar. Our decision came down to either: 1. We’re probably fine; save the money (over a grand after insurance) 2. Someone dies. There’s no middle ground with rabies. If you’re showing signs; you’re dead. It sucks. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/30 "2009-06-02T20:48:58Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > My brother’s GF had a pet bat. It was completely practical as a pet, and a lot of fun, too. [Bat Conservation International disagrees with you](http://www.batcon.org/pdfs/education/fof_faq.pdf) on bats making good pets. They do, however, encourage people to put up bat houses. Then you could have bats around, eating mosquitoes and other bugs, but not have to deal with legal or other issues of keeping them as pets. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/31 "2009-06-02T20:49:38Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > I’m a caver, and the big difference is that the majority of cavers don’t sleep in the cave. A bat is trouble in a room if the occupant is sleeping, and especially so if the occupant is an infant.. Did I NOT cover sleeping in my post? Geesh ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/32 "2009-06-02T21:15:34Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > Obligatory Stephen King reference. Funny, Speaking of obligatory references, I opened this thread for the specific purpose of counting how many posts were made before someone made their ‘obligatory’ reference to a baseball or softball bat (as if they misinterpreted the title) that has a dead spot, and they were wondering what to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/33 "2009-06-02T22:22:52Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > [Bat Conservation International disagrees with you](http://www.batcon.org/pdfs/education/fof_faq.pdf) on bats making good pets. > > They do, however, encourage people to put up bat houses. Then you could have bats around, eating mosquitoes and other bugs, but not have to deal with legal or other issues of keeping them as pets. No. What they actually say is this: > [@](#): > > Dobatsmakegoodpets?Itisimportantforpeopletorememberthatbatsarewildanimalsandshouldbeallowedtoliveintheirnaturalenvironments.Infact,itisillegalinmanycountriestohaveabatasapet.Batsthatcanbecaughtaremostlikelysickandtheyshouldnotbehandled. They cite three reasons why people should not have bats as pets: 1. They are wild, and “should be allowed to live in the wild”; 2. It may be illegal to own a bat; and 3. Bats that can be caught may be sick. All very well, but “people should not have bats as pets” isn’t the same as “bats do not make good pets”; I have direct experience that they do, in fact, make good pets. My brother’s GF obtained the bat from her dad, who was studying captive bats for flight research. Since it was no longer needed for research, it was on its way to be euthanized when his daughter snagged it. It was not obtained from the wild, so the danger of rabies was minimal; it was not a “wild animal”, having been bred in captivity and hand raised by humans; and I have no idea if it is legal to own a bat in Canada or not. Point is that it may be a thoroughly bad idea to _obtain_ a bat for a pet, but if you can, they have very good “pet qualities” if you like - they easily adapt to living with humans, do endearing stuff like purring, can fly & return to their owner, are reasonably smart, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/34 "2009-06-03T00:12:31Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > I’m a caver, and the big difference is that the majority of cavers don’t sleep in the cave. A bat is trouble in a room if the occupant is sleeping, and especially so if the occupant is an infant. You can’t be sure of how long you’ve been exposed, and there’s a chance of infection without a bite or visible bite. This happened to my family, and we decided to get vaccinated. It’s not the painful gut shots it once was - just a series of injections. If you’ve had allergy shots, it’s very similar. > > Our decision came down to either: > > 1. We’re probably fine; save the money (over a grand after insurance) > > 2. Someone dies. > > There’s no middle ground with rabies. If you’re showing signs; you’re dead. It sucks. Yeah, that is the thing. It’s a gamble and if you choose poorly, you die. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/35 "2009-06-03T00:18:50Z")
I also want a pet bat. Currently, I do have a dead bat. It’s in a jar of preservative. An ex girlfriend got it for me at a local occult shop. Considering the fact that there are too many Canis Lupis Familiaris and Felinus Domesticus, I think more endangered species should be kept as pets. ---
**Author:** ![supergoose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@supergoose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/supergoose)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/36 "2009-06-03T21:03:25Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > My brother’s GF had a pet bat. It was completely practical as a pet, and a lot of fun, too. You could play catch with him, and bats purr like cats when they are happy. 😃 > > In line with the theme of this thread … she was so attached to this bat, that she _smuggled it into England_ when they moved there - bats spend much of their time sleeping, she just put it is a sock and the sock in her pocket and walked through customs. I am speechless with jealousy. Anyone know someone who deals with bats used for research and headed for euthanasia in the US I can ingratiate myself with or possibly bribe? ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/37 "2009-06-03T21:18:58Z")
I believe that, at least in some parts of the US, it is legal to purchase and own a flying fox as a pet. Those are a type of fruit-eating bat from Asia, they’re actually pretty big for bats. If you are seriously interested in a bat pet you might want to look into one of those. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/38 "2009-06-03T21:28:58Z")
> [@supergoose](#): > > I am speechless with jealousy. > > Anyone know someone who deals with bats used for research and headed for euthanasia in the US I can ingratiate myself with or possibly bribe? It had a bit of a drawback, in that she found that people were more interested in her pet then in her. Getting known as “that girl with the bat”, being invited places & told to bring the pet, etc. can get old. Also, bats cannot be toilet trained. Feeding 'em was no prob, it ate crickets and mealie worms (both easily purchased at pet stores). ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/39 "2009-06-03T23:52:46Z")
I read that the lifespan of a bat in the wild is about 20 years. It’s about a year in captivity. ETA: a flying fox has a wingspan of about 7 feet. Not the easiest to accommodate pet. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370/40 "2009-06-04T00:54:56Z")
You know how big a freakin’ _horse_ is? People still keep them as pets. And they can’t be toilet-trained either, so far as I know. If bats have such a short lifespan in captivity I suspect it’s because the people keeping them don’t know how to care for them more than some innate problem with keeping them captive. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-not-to-do-with-a-dead-bat/498370.md?page=3)