Eleanora Eden on fri 31 aug 07
Well I have hightailed it out of my studio once again as I can't
work when the bat
who lives in my studio wakes up and starts flying around. We have tried to
open the doors and windows and this critter hasn't taken the hint.
Can't find where s/he sleeps. This is a large room with lots of windows, not
a dark place where a critter could easily hide in a corner.
Eleanora
--
Bellows Falls Vermont
www.eleanoraeden.com
Jeanette Harris on fri 31 aug 07
Geez, Eleanora,
I just Googled How to get Rid of Bats and got a whole page of info.
Try that. :-)
--
http://jeanetteharrisblog.blogspot.com/
http://www.washingtonpotters.org/members/Jeanette_Harris/wpa_jeanette_harris.htm
Jeanette Harris
Poulsbo WA
Forrest on sat 1 sep 07
Will your animal control folks help? I used to work for an ecology lab and =
I
know that most bats pose little direct danger to people. But it is not goo=
d
to have one in the house or studio! The following comes from
http://www.batconservation.org/ and can be trusted as accurate information:
If you have bats living in an unwanted place please follow the directions
below to remove them. Also please note that if you had a bat flying around
in your house and you have children, unvaccinated pets, or were sleeping th=
e
bat NEEDS to be tested for rabies by your local health department. Very few
bats have rabies, but you need to take precautions with any wild animal. Fo=
r
more information bats in your house see Bats Flying Around in Your House
below.
A humane approach to excluding bats from your attic
Bats are one of the most beneficial mammals in the world. There are over 95=
0
kinds of bats, and one common North American species, the big brown bat, ma=
y
eat up to 6,000 insects during one summer night. Only one half of one
percent of all bats get rabies, and only a few of species in Central Americ=
a
drink blood.
Nevertheless, many people are uncomfortable with bats, and do not want to
share their attic with a colony of bats. Bats are probably just as
uncomfortable sharing a house with people, and only resort to living in an
attic when natural roosts like dead trees or caves are no longer available.
If you don't want bats living in your attic, no problem, just follow the
directions below.
There are proven ways to safely remove a colony from your house. Timing is
crucial to enact a safe bat exclusion. Never do an exclusion during June,
July, or August, when the colony is likely to consist of many young that ca=
n
not fly. There are seasons to do an exclusion; in the spring after insects
have appeared or in the fall after the babies have learned to fly.
The first step to a successful exclusion is to enlist the help of several
friends to help you search the outside of your house for exiting bats. Star=
t
watching at sunset, and keep your eye on any small openings until one hour
after sunset. Remember that bats can fit through a hole the size of your
thumb, and that they move fast. Repeat this process for several nights,
until you are confident that you know where they are exiting the house from=
.
The second step is to mount a bat house close to the opening so that the
bats can get accustomed to the house as they come and go. Bat houses are
available from the Organization for Bat Conservation. After a bat house is
placed up you should wait three or four days to let the bats get used to th=
e
house. Then in the afternoon cover all the openings with square pieces of
screen mesh. Using duct tape, secure three sides of the mesh piece to the
house, leaving the bottom open. The piece should be loose enough for the
bats to crawl out of. When dusk comes the bats will crawl out, but will be
unable to return to the attic. They will seek out the nearest, best place t=
o
roost, which will be the bat house. The screen should be left up for a week
or so, at which point the hole(s) can be sealed permanently.
With a few dollars of material and a couple of bat houses anyone can
humanely exclude unwanted bats. The time and effort that you spend to help
the bats find a better home will be replayed many times over by the colony
and the thousands of mosquitoes, flies, and moths they will eat You will
also be setting a wonderful example for your children, friends, and
neighbors when you show them how to co-exist with the natural world.
Steps for a proper exclusion of bats:
Step 1: Enlist the help of several friends to help you search the outside o=
f
your house for exiting bats. Start watching at sunset, and keep your eye on
any small openings until one hour after sunset. Remember that bats can fit
through a hole the size of your thumb, and that they move fast. Repeat this
process for several nights, until you are confident that you know where the=
y
are exiting the house from.
Step 2: Mount a bat house close to the opening so that the bats can get
accustomed to the house as they come and go.
Step 3: Cover all the openings with square pieces of screen mesh. Using duc=
t
tape, secure three sides of the mesh piece to the house, leaving the bottom
open. The piece should be loose enough for the bats to crawl out of. When
dusk comes the bats will crawl out, but will be unable to return to the
attic. They will seek out the nearest, best place to roost, which will be
the bat house.
Notice how 3 sides of the exclusion device are taped down, leaving the
bottom open for the bats to exit.
Step 4: The screen should be left up for a week or so, at which point the
hole(s) can be sealed permanently.
Exclusions in Michigan
Critter Catchers is the exclusive bat removal partner for the Organization
for Bat Conservation. In order to ensure proper exclusion, wildlife
specialists receive annual training on various bat species and their
behavior through this partnership.
Those located in Southeast Michigan, are encouraged to contact Critter
Catchers to safely remove bats from unwanted places. Animal control service=
s
are available to residential and commercial customers.
You can help provide a more suitable habitat for bats, by requesting that a=
n
OBC bat house be installed during the bat exclusion process.
See Critter Catchers Inc. "Bats in Your House" brochure.
248-432-2712
www.crittercatchersinc.com
Bats flying around in your house
If you have a bat flying around in your house, don=B9t panic. It is wise to
nothe that all wild animals will bite if threatened so make sure never to
touch a bat with your bare hands. If you think that there is reasonable
probability that someone has come in contact with the bat, safely capture
the animal with a butterfly net, box, thick towel, or leather work gloves.
Put the bat in a secure container and contact your local animal control
officer, and instruct the officer to have it tested immediately for rabies.
If the test comes back positive (meaning the bat had the rabies virus),
medical attention is needed. Contact your local emergency health provider.
Reasonable probability includes sleeping adults, children who cannot give a=
n
accurate history of events, or a mentally incapacitated and intoxicated
individual. If there is no reasonable possibility of contact with anyone,
simply open a door or window and let the bat fly out.
Bats that are often found in people's houses are young bats that have lost
their way. They may also be adult bats that accidentally fly through an ope=
n
window or door. The first step in removing the bat from the home is to stay
calm. If the bat is flying around, it is not trying to attack anyone, it is
only attempting to find a way out. Turn on some lights in the house so that
you can easily see the bat and the bat can also see (bats are not blind).
Next, close the doors to adjoining rooms, open the doors and windows in the
room the bat is flying around, and if possible, turn on a light outside so
the bat can readily see the exit. The bat has very good echolocation
(radar), but it is also frightened being in a human's house. More than
likely, the bat will just fly right out the open door or window within a fe=
w
minutes. You may want to be more direct and use a small mesh net or pillow
case to gently catch the bat in flight. If the bat lands and does not fly
again, there are other ways to remove it. First, put on a pair of thick
leather work gloves, and find a small cardboard box or coffee can. Slowly
walk up to the bat and put the container over the bat, slip a piece of
cardboard or book behind it and take it outside and let it go.
As long as the bat never touches anyone, there is no need to worry about
transmitting any diseases or viruses. The Center for Disease Control
recommends that anyone that comes in direct, unprotected, contact with wild
mammals should receive rabies post-exposure treatment from a health-care
provider, if the animal is not able to be caught and tested. Rabies
post-exposure treatment should also be administered in situations in which
there is a reasonable probability that such contact occurred (e.g., a
sleeping person awakes to find a bat in the room or an adult witnesses a ba=
t
in the room with a previously unattended child, mentally disabled person, o=
r
an intoxicated person).
Steps to Follow if a Bat is Flying in Your House
Step 1: Assess the situation. Was any one in the house sleeping or do you
have children who cannot give an accurate history of events, or a mentally
incapacitated or intoxicated individual in the house? Basically is anyone a=
t
risk that can not tell you for certain that they were not bit by the bat. I=
f
anyone was at risk contact your local health department immediately. Try to
capture the bat so it can be tested for rabies. If not, follow steps below.
Step 2: Stay calm. The bat is not trying to attack anyone, it is only
attempting to find a way out. Turn on some lights in the house so that you
can easily see the bat and the bat can see as well.
Step 3: Close the doors to adjoining rooms, open the doors and windows in
the room the bat is flying around, and if possible, turn on a light outside
so the bat can readily see the exit.
Step 4: The bat will probably just fly right out the open door or window
within a few minutes. You may want to be more direct and use a small mesh
net or pillow case to gently catch the bat in flight. If the bat lands and
does not fly again, there are other ways to remove it. First, put on a pair
of thick leather work gloves, and find a small cardboard box or coffee can.
Slowly walk up to the bat and put the container over the bat, slip a piece
of cardboard or book behind it and take it outside and let it go.
On 8/31/07 8:30 PM, "Eleanora Eden" wrote:
> Well I have hightailed it out of my studio once again as I can't
> work when the bat
> who lives in my studio wakes up and starts flying around. We have tried=
to
> open the doors and windows and this critter hasn't taken the hint.
>=20
> Can't find where s/he sleeps. This is a large room with lots of windows,=
not
> a dark place where a critter could easily hide in a corner.
>=20
> Eleanora
> --
> Bellows Falls Vermont
> www.eleanoraeden.com
>=20
> _________________________________________________________________________=
_____
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>=20
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>=20
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots2@visi=
.com
Dannon Rhudy on sat 1 sep 07
Eleanora, you might try this: When it is dark/dusk outside,
go into the studio and turn on every light. Bats generally
will fly toward the dark - leave the door open. Trouble
is, if you can't find where it gets in, it will be there again
the next day. Look along the eaves - there may be a vent
that has a hole. Bats can get through a 1/4" gap, and
sometimes they do. They occasionally get down my
chimney, once or twice a year I have to get one out.
Not my favorite chore, but I just keep turning on the
lights behind it until it makes it's way through the dark
and outside.
regards
Dannon Rhudy
Chris Leake on sat 1 sep 07
Hi Eleanora,
They don't need much of a space to crawl up into. What kind of bat is it?
Chris
http://www.leakeart.com
Jeremy McLeod on sun 2 sep 07
Perhaps one could convince the furry bat in question to take a turn on the
wheelhead like all the other bats in the room?
OK, so I'm a punster w/ low impulse control this morning...
Peace.
Jeremy
Vicki Hardin on sun 2 sep 07
Dannon Rhudy wrote: turn on every light.>
I used to live in a house built out of twin grain silos. Some of the
ceilings were over twenty foot tall. When I had a bat decide to take up
residence with me, chasing it with a broom was not always an option. That's
when I learned that bats don't like lights and I sleep deprived it for days
by leaving the lights on until it was chaseable and I hearded it out an open
door with a broom. I guess it decided that I was not very hospitable because
it never came back. So, leaving the lights on is a very good idea.
Vicki Hardin
http://ClayArtWebGuide.com
John Kudlacek on mon 3 sep 07
Eleanora,
What potter doesn't have bats in his studio as well as his "belfry". (
Sorry, couldn't resist.)
John
| |
|
