Rabies

Rabies: The fear of all fears associated with bats is Rabies.This is a disease caused by the bullet shaped Rhabdovirus, which affects the nervous system. This is a disease common to mammals and there are few individuals that recover after contacting the disease. This is a disease that is fatal to both humans and mammals.

Animals that have contracted the disease become sicker and sicker as time passes on. They usually die within two or three days after symptoms appear. Some animals with rabies, as you probably already know, go mad. They attack all that is in their path, and are very vicious. Some on the other hand, suffer from a progressing paralysis which usually begins from the hind legs, and then moves forward into the body. Some animals also go through both stages, yet whatever happens, the end result is the same.

In either occurrence, the throat muscles become so paralyzed that the animal cannot swallow its own saliva. This causes that infamous “ foaming at the mouth”, and will oftentimes cause an increased amount of thirst called “hydrophobia”. Now, aside from the characteristics of rabies, it should be noted that looks can be deceiving. If you are bitten by a bat at any time, you should seek immediate medical attention. Now, vampire bats will bite mammals and humans on a normal basis. As they feed on blood, they will nevertheless bite their prey. Therefore, they are also a prime spreader of the disease. Many cattle are inflicted with the disease each year.

With these facts in mind, it is clear that rabies is a frightening disease. Everyone should avoid aggressive animals, and more importantly people without appropriate training should not handle sick, dying, or dead animals.

Some Do’s and Dont’s about bats

1. Bats of all sizes will attack people if they feel threatened.
2. If you must handle a bat, minimize the chances of it biting you. By wrapping the bat in a thick towel, or wearing thick gloves, you will make it virtually impossible for the bat to bite you.
3. Do not keep bats as pets.
4. If you are bitten by a bat, see a physician immediately. If the bat is available, it can be tested for rabies.
5. If you are working in an area with bat droppings, us a respirator or mask that will remove particles 2 microns or larger in diameter.
6. Avoid disturbing bats in their roosts, bats that are hibernating or roosting are very sensitive, disturbing them can lead to their death.
7. If you must handle bats, obtain pre-exposure rabies vaccines.

For most of the twentieth century, bats steadily declined in numbers across the United States. Their disappearance was related to the fact that bat are more likely to suffer large population loses than any other animals. One of the major factors in the bats decline has been their habit of roosting together in large numbers. Unlike other small mammals, some bats live together in colonies that may number in the millions. This behavior has resulted in thousands of bats dying from several natural disasters such as flooding, or from human disturbances.

Another factor in the disappearance of bats is their need to sleep during the day. Because the bats sleep in caves and buildings where they can be easily found, they are at greater risk for attack than other animals. Sleeping bats are easy prey for animal predators or people with the intent of harming them. Peoples fear of bats, based on the belief that bats infect humans with deadly diseases, such as rabies, led people to kill bats. Many communities, believing they are ridding themselves of dangerous animals, organize campaigns to destroy any bats found nearby.

Animals such as snakes, owls, hawks, skunks, and raccoons occasionally eat bats. But man bears the responsibility for bats disappearing at a rate that threatens them with extinction. Vandalism of bat roosting sites, and killing bats for sport, was considered acceptable for much of the twentieth century. Even when people have no intention of harming bats, they can still do harm. People exploring a cave during a certain species hibernation (vampire bats do not hibernate), or when females are having their young, has resulted in the death of many bats.

Bats are mammals. The word “mammal” comes from the Greek word mammae, meaning breasts. Like most mammals, bats give birth to their young. The young will feed on milk from their mothers. Bats have fur on their heads, backs, and bellies. This keeps them warm on cool nights, and in cool bat roosts. The babies will also hold onto their mother by grasping onto their fur.

Bats are gentle and shy creatures. They have lightweight bones and rubbery wings. They use their sharp teeth to cut and bite through to get food. All bats have feet with strong, grasping hooked claws. These claws help the bats to hang upside-down. Each species of bat has its own look, size, shape, and color. Cave dwellers are usually darkly colored, such as brown or gray. Fruit eaters and bats that live in trees may be light in color, such as red, silver-tipped, or yellow. The colors help them to look more like the leaves.

Each species also has its own distinct look. Some bats have heads that look like those of other mammals. Flying foxes have heads that look like foxes heads. Some bats have nice looking faces with shy and humanlike expressions. Many bats are so strange looking that they frighten people. Some bats have large horn shaped or pointed ears, large lumpy noses, and grooved, wrinkled mouths. The wrinkle faced bat may be the strangest bat in the world.

Each species of bat also has its own particular diet. Many eat insects, and some fed on fruit or pollen. Some eat fish, some eat meat such as birds and lizards, and as we all know, the vampire bat feeds on blood.