Yes. Bats can spread rabies to other wildlife, unvaccinated domestic animals, and humans. Today, it is very rare for people to get rabies in the United States, but most people who do get rabies here were exposed to a bat. This is why it is important to stay away from bats. It is also important to teach children not to touch bats and to tell an adult right away if a bat touches or bites them.

No. Most bats are healthy and are good for our environment. For example, they eat insects that can harm people, plants, and animals. If you see bats looking for food on summer evenings, roosting in empty buildings, or sleeping over the winter in caves or mines, enjoy them from a distance and do not disturb them.

Between 2014 and 2023, just over 3% of the bats sent for rabies testing in New York State had rabies. Most bats do not have rabies, but you cannot tell if a bat is rabid just by looking at it, so you should always stay away from and not handle bats.

No. If one bat in a colony tests negative for rabies, other bats in the colony could still have rabies. Also, if one bat in a colony tests positive for rabies, it does not mean that the whole colony is infected.

Rabid bats may act strangely, such as being active during the day, or they may be on the ground, not able to move, or may bite a person or animal. Not all rabid bats act in an unusual way, but bats that do are more likely to have rabies. The only way to know for sure if a bat is rabid is to test it for rabies in a laboratory.

Rabid bats rarely attack people, but you should keep away from them. If you think a bat touched you, you should contact your local health department to see if you should be treated.

As with all animals, rabies is spread by bats mostly through a bite. Many of the people who died of bat rabies in the United States did not know a bat bit them. Bats have small teeth which may leave marks that you cannot easily see. Children, people who have a disability or who cannot clearly understand or report what has happened, and people who were asleep when a bat was in the room are more likely than others to not realize they were bitten. Bites can also happen when someone picks up a bat or when one flies into them and touches their bare skin.

First, determine if a human, pet, or livestock may have had contact (a bite, scratch, or other physical contact) with the bat. Report any possible exposures to your local health department.

If it was possible that there was contact, the bat should be captured and tested for rabies. If possible, capture the bat without touching it and without damaging its head. Bats found close to a young child who was alone, a person who was sleeping, a person with a sensory or mental disability, or a pet should also be tested.

If the bat is not captured and tested, or if it is captured and tested positive, anyone who may have been exposed should be given the rabies vaccine as soon as possible.

Recommended items for a bat capture kit:

• Gloves (heavy, preferably flexible thick leather)
• Forceps (9" to 12" length, rat-tooth for gripping)
• Extension pole with net (fine mesh insect net of polyester or muslin material with a spring steel hoop on telescoping pole -- net and pole sold separately)
• Can with tight fitting lid or similar container (e.g., cardboard ice cream carton with lid)
• Sheet of cardboard to slide between wall and container
• Tape
• Flashlights with fresh batteries and extra batteries

When capturing a bat, carefully avoid direct contact with the bat and avoid damaging its head. Follow these steps:

• Close the windows and the room and closet doors; turn on the lights if the room is dark
• Wait for the bat to land
• Wearing gloves (heavy, preferably flexible thick leather), cover the bat with a can or similar container, such as a small jar, bowl, or box with a lid
• Slide a piece of cardboard under the container, trapping the bat
• With one hand firmly holding the cardboard in place against the top of the can, turn the can right side up
• Replace the cardboard with the lid (if no lid, tape the cardboard tightly to the can)
• If a bat has landed behind something or in a space that is too narrow to cover with a can, forceps may be used to capture it. Using a gloved hand to hold the forceps, firmly but gently grasp the bat under a wing and close to its body. Place the bat in the bottom of a can and place the lid on the can (if no lid, tape a piece of cardboard over the can)

To capture a bat with a net, follow these steps:

• While wearing gloves (heavy, preferably flexible thick leather), slowly approach the bat with the net
• Rotate the pole so that the bat is scooped into the net and the net turns in on itself containing the bat
• With a gloved hand, grab the bat through the outside of the net, slide the coffee can into the net, push the bat into the can, and place the lid on the can (if no lid, tape a piece of cardboard over the can)

Watch this video to learn how to capture a bat safely

If a dog, cat, or other domestic animal is bitten by or comes into contact with a bat, capture the bat if possible. Contact the local health department to have the bat tested for rabies. If the bat is rabid or is not available for testing, a veterinarian must give the pet a rabies booster vaccination within five days. If an unvaccinated animal has contact with a rabid bat or one that is thought to be rabid, the pet must be vaccinated and then quarantined. If it cannot be quarantined, it must be put down (euthanized).

No. People can safely enjoy bats from a distance.

Bats found roosting in New York State from spring through fall are generally either "house" bats or "tree" bats.

House bats, the big brown and the little brown bat, are the kinds that people are mostly in contact with and are most frequently submitted for testing. House bats can be in attics, behind shutters and in other sheltered areas of houses, camp buildings, and outbuildings (barns, garages, etc.). There may be just a few or hundreds of bats in these places. They are usually adult females that use the roost to give birth and raise their young until they can fly on their own (early June through late August). In the fall, these house bats leave the roost and fly to caves and mines to sleep through the winter (hibernate).

Tree bats usually roost in tree cavities, under bark, or in rock crevices and are sometimes in similar areas as house bats. Most tree bats also leave in fall and winter to hibernate in caves and mines but may also migrate south for the winter.

Killing bats without a good reason is not good for the environment, not humane, and not a permanent solution to getting rid of bats. There are no chemicals or pesticides that are legal to use, and using illegal pesticides and chemicals can poison humans and animals. It may also cause sick or dying bats to stay in the building, which would make them more likely to come into contact with people and pets.

Keep bats out of places where they are likely to come into contact with people or pets:

• Before batproofing, make sure there are no bats already in the roost. The best time to batproof is late fall through winter when most have left their summer roosts to migrate to a cave to hibernate. You should not batproof between late May and mid-August, so you do not trap baby bats in the roost. You can close one or two large exits ahead of time and seal the last openings while the animals are away. Common places where bats may enter are through chimneys, louver fans, air intakes, exhaust vents, openings around plumbing, power or cable lines, spaces around doors and windows, and where exterior siding has shrunk, warped, or loosened.
• Take these steps to keep bats out:
  • Keep doors and windows that do not have screens closed
  • Make sure chimneys are capped, and electrical and plumbing openings are plugged
  • Find openings where bats can enter the building by:
    • Watching the building from outside to see where bats leave or enter the building at dusk or just before dawn
    • Listening for squeaking noises coming from attic and walls
    • Inspecting attic space, rafters, porches, and walls for signs of roosting bats, including guano (excrement) and crystallized urine, or bare scratched areas on beams
  • Close or cover openings larger than ½ inch by ½ inch square into the attic, basement, walls, or other occupied areas. Some house bats can pass through cracks as thin as a pencil. You can use these materials:
    • Expanding spray-on foam
    • Caulk
    • Wire mesh
    • Wood that fits tightly
    • Steel wool (around pipes that enter buildings)
    • Polypropylene bird netting
  • You can open enclosed building overhangs to get rid of known bat roost sites. To keep bats from roosting behind shutters, they should be spaced an inch or more from the wall to let in more light and ventilation. You may need to replace old roofing materials and fill any spaces between chimneys and outside walls.
  • Bat boxes may bring bats into closer contact with people so do not put them close to homes or areas where there are people. However, bat boxes may sometimes be helpful if they are carefully used to manage where bats roost.

If you need help removing a bat from your home or getting rid of bats that have been in your home for a while, you can find a list of local nuisance wildlife control operators on the Department of Environmental Conservation's website. If you have questions about rabies or to report a possible rabies exposure, call your local health department, who may also give you guidance on bat problems.

• If it is a large building where there are no children without an adult, evaluate the situation for potential risk, and consider sending everyone outside.
• If it is a small building where bats could come close to people and there are children:
  • Leave one person in the building to watch the bat
  • Remove everyone else from the building, including adults who will not be involved in capturing the bat
  • Make a list of people as they leave the building or immediately afterwards
  • Capture the bat
  • Report the incident to the local health department who will submit the bat for rabies testing
• If you think someone has come into contact with a bat:
  • Capture the bat if possible
  • Immediately make a list of those people who had possible contact
  • Wash the area of potential contact with soap and water
  • Report the incident to the local health department
  • Submit the bat for rabies testing
  • If the wound is severe, bring the individual to a health care provider for medical treatment

• If you see a bat flying at night outside, let people in the area know about the bat and the risk of rabies and to avoid contact with it. Report possible exposures.
• If you see a bat flying outside during the day, let people in the area know about the bat and the risk of rabies and to avoid contact with it. If the bat appears to be aggressive, such as swooping at people on purpose, keep people away from the area, capture the bat if possible, contact the local health department, and submit the bat for testing.
• If you find a bat outside on the ground or roosting in a public place, ask everyone to leave the area, try to safely capture the bat, contact the local health department, and submit the bat for testing.

• General Guidelines for Management of Bat-Related Incidents at Children's Camps
• Fact Sheet for Bat Habitat Inspection and Batproofing in Children's Camps
• Bat Capture Kit for Children's Camps