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January 2015 Moms
literarymuse
member
NBR: Woke up to a bat in my room
literarymuse
member
Last night, I woke up at 3 or so because I kept feeling a breeze around my head. I heard a slight flapping noise, but I assumed that it was just a strong wind that was making my curtain flap around a lot around my head, which happens sometimes when we sleep with the windows open. However, then the flapping noise continued, and I looked up to see something in the windowsill. Turns out that somehow a bat got into our apartment.
I woke up DH, but both of us are pretty freaked out by bats. We managed to get it out of our bedroom, and we opened the front door and the bathroom window (screen up) so that it would have multiple places to escape. We retreated to our room for several minutes and heard it flap around in the hallway a bit. Then we didn't hear anything. DH went out to check and didn't see the bat anywhere, so we assumed it went outside. At this point, it was about 3:45. We went back to bed, a little freaked out, but glad that the bat was gone.
DH always falls asleep more easily than I do. I kept hearing other noises and was nervous the bat was still in the house. Then, sure enough, about half an hour later, it was back in our bedroom. I woke DH up again, and we huddled under the covers. He managed to open the screen on the window just above our bed. After another 15 minutes or so of the bat flying around our room, it finally managed to find its way out the window.
Then, this morning, I got online and found out that there's a good chance of getting rabies from bats, and if you wake up to a bat flying around your room, you should consider that exposure to rabies. Bats have such small, razor sharp teeth that you can be bitten without knowing that you've been bit. Experts recommend capturing the bat so that it can be tested for rabies (which super sucks because not many bats have rabies, and they have to kill the bat to test it). We didn't know about any of this; we just wanted it out of our house.
I called the local health department who told me that I should have caught the bat (thanks, but seriously, bats freak us both out. And that knowledge doesn't help us now). They said that they recommend treating this as exposure to rabies and that I should get the vaccinations. They didn't know about how that would work with me being pregnant, although when I looked online, it seems fine. I then called my midwife clinic, and the nurse there said she'd get back to me after she talked with my midwife. This is a fairly uncommon thing, so she wasn't sure what to tell me.
I'm freaking out a bit because I spent most of the morning researching bats, bat bites, rabies, etc., and I found out the vaccinations can cost anywhere from $2000 to $7000+. I can't imagine having to pay this on top of all the bills for pregnancy! And student loan payments are going to start soon...
Has anyone else had any sort of experience with this? Or experience getting the post-exposure rabies shots? I'm really trying not to freak out any more, but this is stressing me out so much. I wish the silly creature had never found its way into our home...
I woke up DH, but both of us are pretty freaked out by bats. We managed to get it out of our bedroom, and we opened the front door and the bathroom window (screen up) so that it would have multiple places to escape. We retreated to our room for several minutes and heard it flap around in the hallway a bit. Then we didn't hear anything. DH went out to check and didn't see the bat anywhere, so we assumed it went outside. At this point, it was about 3:45. We went back to bed, a little freaked out, but glad that the bat was gone.
DH always falls asleep more easily than I do. I kept hearing other noises and was nervous the bat was still in the house. Then, sure enough, about half an hour later, it was back in our bedroom. I woke DH up again, and we huddled under the covers. He managed to open the screen on the window just above our bed. After another 15 minutes or so of the bat flying around our room, it finally managed to find its way out the window.
Then, this morning, I got online and found out that there's a good chance of getting rabies from bats, and if you wake up to a bat flying around your room, you should consider that exposure to rabies. Bats have such small, razor sharp teeth that you can be bitten without knowing that you've been bit. Experts recommend capturing the bat so that it can be tested for rabies (which super sucks because not many bats have rabies, and they have to kill the bat to test it). We didn't know about any of this; we just wanted it out of our house.
I called the local health department who told me that I should have caught the bat (thanks, but seriously, bats freak us both out. And that knowledge doesn't help us now). They said that they recommend treating this as exposure to rabies and that I should get the vaccinations. They didn't know about how that would work with me being pregnant, although when I looked online, it seems fine. I then called my midwife clinic, and the nurse there said she'd get back to me after she talked with my midwife. This is a fairly uncommon thing, so she wasn't sure what to tell me.
I'm freaking out a bit because I spent most of the morning researching bats, bat bites, rabies, etc., and I found out the vaccinations can cost anywhere from $2000 to $7000+. I can't imagine having to pay this on top of all the bills for pregnancy! And student loan payments are going to start soon...
Has anyone else had any sort of experience with this? Or experience getting the post-exposure rabies shots? I'm really trying not to freak out any more, but this is stressing me out so much. I wish the silly creature had never found its way into our home...
This discussion has been closed.
Re: NBR: Woke up to a bat in my room
Glad it's gone now.
Not gonna lie though, I lol'd at you and your H huddling under the covers!
I would have too though.
I didn't have a bat but last year we had a flying squirrel visit us at 3 am...We have sky lights that open up and well they can squeeze themselves to the size of a quarter if not smaller and made it through the damn screen. It terrified me I could hear it jumping on the carpet. My dang DH wouldn't wake up and I finally hit him and told him to look. Low and behold lil flying squirrel sitting in the corner.
I had to come over to a friends house 3 years ago to remove a bat. I was the only one with guts to come and get the lil thing that was asleep hanging under their fire place. I was freaked out but my friend I thought she was going to die...so I sucked it up..They arent the friendliest lil creatures...but i got him with big welder gloves and let him out. Its def scarey when they are freaking out and flying around your head!
TTC #1 5/13 BFP #3 5/2/14 DD born 1/19/15
NTNP #2 8/17 BFP 12/13/18 ED 8/21/19
How long have you lived in that house? Definitely have your landlord check and seal the chimney if necessary. Check the screens on your windows too, they are like mice and can get in through very small holes.
BFP#1 EDD 04.20.2010, SUNSHINE baby boy born 03.31.2010
BFP#2 EDD 12.07.2014, natural mc 04.09.2014 at 5w3d
BFP#3 EDD 01.14.15, RAINBOW baby girl born 01.16.2015
jan'15 january siggy challenge: baby fails
Some bats swooped around my head in a cave one time, and I got in the kneeling on the floor, hands over head, tornado tuck position. DH thought it was hilarious.
Sorry you are having to deal with this.