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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">Harley leaped into the air and knocked
the bat down; it was stunned but quickly recovered and flew away.
I never saw it again. I'm not sure if it got back outside, or if
it died in a hidden spot in the garage. I looked for it and also
watched Harley to see if he noticed where it went, but he didn't
seem to know either. I am going to be rearranging the garage in
the next few weeks, so I will probably find it if it never got
out. But if it had died in the garage, I think it would have
created a stink, or Harley would have found it, and either played
with it, or ate it. Rabies can be transmitted by eating the raw
meat of a dead rabid animal, or handling the meat with bare hands
if you have an open sore or cut. Yes, it's true that only a
small percentage of bats carry rabies - 1 to 4% or even less,
depending on location and species. A cat can't tell you whether
it's been bitten, and even humans don't always know if they were
asleep when they were bitten. Even awake, people don't always
know, because bat teeth are so tiny and sharp that they don't
always leave a mark. A man in Monticello, MN died of rabies a few
years back after shooing a bat out of his cabin. He felt a sharp
pain on his finger, but looked, and saw no blood or mark, and
thought nothing more of it. A month later, he developed symptoms
of rabies, and a couple weeks after that he was dead. It took a
while to diagnose because it is so rare in the US that most
doctors (99.9%) will never see a case. Third world doctors are
much more familiar with human cases (50,000 and more human
fatalities a year in the rest of the world).<br>
<br>
My plan with Harley is to vaccinate for rabies every 2-3 years or
if I see a bat in the garage. He will receive no other
vaccinations, though he did have the distemper combo as a kitten.
I also make sure I separate vaccinations (except the combo) so as
not to hit his immune system with all at once. When his FeLV
begins to progress, he will no longer receive any vaccines at
all. <br>
<br>
Dumb thing about the calicivirus part of the combo - it doesn't
protect against all strains of calicivirus! A local vet posts an
anonymous "case of the week" online for people to try to guess,
and that's what a recent one was. The cat was healthy and
vaccinated, and was exposed to a different strain of it, and
became extremely ill.<br>
<br>
There is a soffit on the garage that needs to be repaired. It's
on my project list. I should probably make it a higher priority,
since it will soon be the time of year that a bat will want to
seek shelter for the winter. But I only ever saw that one bat in
the garage.<br>
<br>
Marsha<br>
<br>
On 8/15/2014 12:18 PM, Lee Evans wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote
cite="mid:1408123139.149.YahooMailNeo@web126201.mail.ne1.yahoo.com"
type="cite">
<div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:Courier
New, courier, monaco, monospace, sans-serif;font-size:10pt">
<div style="" class=""
id="yiv7173692452yui_3_16_0_8_1408118640080_4"><span style=""
class="" id="yiv7173692452yui_3_16_0_8_1408118640080_48">The
regular rabies shot actually lasts up to 3 years for
immunity. Is the bat still living in the garage with Harley?
You should not vaccinate him every year. It's not necessary.
Not all bats have rabies or carry rabies. If there are holes
in the garage ceiling or rafters, get someone to patch them
up because bats do not usually fly in the door. They will go
for a dark hole high up. I once found a dead bat in my yard,
thought the cats had killed it and sent the body to rabies
control. The bat did not have rabies. However, I had all the
yard cats re-vaccinated for rabies. At that time, the vet
told me that the protection lasts about 3 years, even with
the regular shot.<br style="" class="" clear="none">
</span></div>
<br>
</div>
</blockquote>
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