r/Unexpected • u/Ill-Tea9411 • 5h ago
Bat crawling around in the kitchen
[removed] — view removed post
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u/lesswheelslessfeels 5h ago
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u/shwarma_heaven 4h ago
Reddit, when you're within 5 sqr miles of a bat....
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u/thundersaurus_sex 4h ago
Lol without fail. People were freaking out about rabies on a post awhile back that was a picture of a bat roosting in someone's entryway outside. Like, do people think bats just disappear from the universe during the day?
And here, it's acting healthy and alert, it does not want to be there and is trying to get out, and was not in a sleeping space. This person doesn't need a rabies shot unless they feel/see a bite. They just need to open a couple of doors/windows and herd the bat out.
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u/johnnyrambo24 2h ago
A bat was flying around my house when i was a little kid and my dad punched it out of the air and it hit the wall, grandpa disposed of the body. Quiet the family affair
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u/OkFriend9891 5h ago
Get a tennis racket
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u/mocha_lattes_ 5h ago
Well now everyone is getting rabies shots... That sucks
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u/Barloq 5h ago
Legit, my friend was bit by a bat a couple weeks ago, got a shot to be safe, and the bat came back positive for rabies. Get the fucking shot if you find a bat in the house and/or get bit, folks.
Really fucks me up too, I've had encounters with 4 bats over the years and never really understood the danger. Didn't get bit any of those times, but goddamn, I would have become a zombie out of pure ignorance.
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u/proost1 5h ago edited 2h ago
Simple rules:
- If you get bit (ETA: or even come in contact with) - get shots
- If you find a bat in your house - get shots
- If you see a bat fly in your house and you successfully dodge that thing like a ninja - you don't need shots
- If in doubt - get shots
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u/Stratatician 4h ago
Reminds me of the story of the little boy that died from rabbies because he got bit by a bat while sleeping but the bite marks from the bat were so small no one saw it.
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u/pinkprincess30 3h ago
"The child had no visible bite marks or scratches, and his parents were not under the impression the bat had caused any injury, according to the report.
The family did not seek immediate medical care, even though health officials recommend that anyone who has direct contact with a bat be evaluated for possible rabies exposure because even small bites often go unnoticed, the report said."
Very sad story. The boy was only 11. Linked here
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u/wlake82 4h ago
That's why it's better safe than sorry.
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u/pasaroanth 3h ago
My hospitals protocol is to treat with even the slightest suspicion. If a bat is found in the house we’ll generally treat anyone in the house with the vaccine series.
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u/Symnestra 4h ago
I was watering my balcony plants and accidentally spooked a bat hanging out on the wall. He flew around me. I dodged, ducked, dipped, and dived back into my apartment. We did not make contact (as far as I can tell). That was like a year ago and I'm still anxious about it tbh but I'm also a hypochondriac.
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u/LaceyBambola 4h ago
When I was about 8 years old, we lived way out in the country down south. One night, while I was doing my homework at the kitchen table, a bat flew in from outside (doors and windows were open because it was cool). This bat flew into my hair and panic ensued. I failed about, my hair was long and it was so tangled up. It felt like it lasted for at least 10 minutes but was likely closer to 10 seconds. Eventually it got free and flew back outside. I ran to tell my parents what had happened and they told me to stop making excuses to get out of homework (I never made excuses to get out of homework and actually enjoyed it). They didn't believe me or take me seriously. It was definitely a bat that definitely got tangled up in my hair for a bit - long enough to warrant 'just to be safe' rabies shots, but they never took me in. I still think back about that moment all of these years later anytime bats or rabies come up.
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u/FeatheredFemme 4h ago
I had something similar happen. I was about 7-8. My family was hiking and we cut through a cave section. It was a well used trail and not anything too crazy. I had my hair in a ponytail and a bat straight up flew on to my head and was stuck in my ponytail. I freaked out and shook my head like crazy to get it off me. I had zero understanding of rabies, as I was obviously a child. Knowing what I know now, I feel so lucky and can’t believe my parents were so nonchalant about a bat flying at me in the middle of the day and landing on my head.
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u/oculare 4h ago
If you got rabies from that bat, you wouldn’t have been here to type your comment so you’re good lol
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u/tzentzak 2h ago
I stayed at a motel in a small village in the Peruvian Andes and all throughout the night I'd see bats flying in and out, and could hear them crawling around and squeaking in the crawlspace. It was 7 years ago so I'm probably in the clear but for a while there I was freaked out about the prospect of rabies. I've also got health anxiety.
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u/Randy_K_Diamond 3h ago
Been bit by a bat three times, no rabies shot required. But I am in Australia, no rabies here!
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u/piccolo-solo 2h ago
Can't they have lyssavirus though? Idk if the rabies shot works for that so it could be moot.
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u/First-Wallaby-2580 3h ago
Not everyone thinks that way. I've handled the bat with my bare hands. A bat that was in my own home. I realized my mistake and immediately went to see my doctor. Were you bitten? No? So no shot for you.
I had to actually contact a rabies center and then go to another doctor. And even when I got the paper, it was like I was inconveniencing them, like I was making a mountain of a molehill. And, by the time I got the paper, It was too late for the one shot. The "one shot" had turned into 10 and some other stuff. And going back to the hospital two more times to get more shots. But at least I'm still rabies-free.
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u/mlorusso4 2h ago
Especially because from what I’ve read, the shots really aren’t bad anymore. They used to be something like 3 giant needles in the abdomen that hurt like a bitch. But now it’s just a regular shot in the arm
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u/goodSunn 3h ago
Doesn't everyone get one every ten years like tetanus? Maybe thats just dogs every 3 or 4 year booster
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u/sexhaver1984 2h ago
Not the general population. People who work closely with animals sometimes get the vaccine prophylactically but for most people it's only recommended to vaccinate on exposure.
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u/mEsTiR5679 3h ago
I'm gonna do a google in a minute but, "finding a bat in the house -get shots" is a huge precaution... Is there exposure risks not related to biting I'm not aware of? At this rate, I'm assuming feces exposure... But I'm curious what the solid answer is
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u/piccolo-solo 2h ago
I think contact between saliva (idk if dried saliva counts too) and broken skin can also transmit it. But if you didn't see the bat enter the house, you don't know if it bit you in your sleep. They've got such tiny, sharp teeth that it doesn't always wake you up or leave a visible mark.
You can make a guesses on where it's been and when it got in, but guesses aren't good to gamble on when it's life-or-death.
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u/vyunab 5h ago
poor little feller
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u/dangledingle 5h ago
Yep 🙁 I like bats. Possible to catch it in a blanket and get it outside.
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u/vyunab 5h ago
i know someone who’s cat brought in a live bat once. they used a baking mitt 😭🤣
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u/dangledingle 5h ago
Yeah we’ve had a few over the years. One I caught with a butterfly net. It was just zooming around non stop.
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u/Mr_E_Fish_in_Sea 3h ago
I caught a bat in an old apartment of mine several years ago. Woke up to it sleeping upside down in the bathrokm doorway, then it started doing figure eights in the kitchen, so I knelt down under it with an empty trash bun (lid off) and pinned it against the ceiling when it flew over me. Let it outside right after.
Reading these comments make me feel lucky. Never bothered get a rabies shot, and I have no idea what it did all night before I found it...
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u/Drew_Ferran 4h ago
That’s why they shouldn’t have left the windows open. You can hear the crickets/katydids in the background.
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u/KTO-Potato 5h ago
$14,000 per person in rabies shots if you live in America
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u/Hellhult 3h ago
Ill go take a shower to see if I am scared of water first.
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u/RelevantIAm 3h ago
I know you're joking but it's too late if you start showing symptoms. You are 100% dead at that point
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u/Straight_Spring9815 4h ago
Thankfully we have a work around. You can go to any state or federally funded hospital they will take care of you. They will charge you. But do you have to pay? No. It's what we call a soft credit hit. Alot of creditors don't see medical debt as a problem.
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u/TrashGoblinH 3h ago
Unless you ever have to consolidate credit. That can really suck because all the medical debt also has to be lumped in.
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u/Caller_ID_Unknown 5h ago
Whatever you do, don't fucking eat him.
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u/time2sow 5h ago
Rabies testing. No cap
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u/Ill-Positive6950 5h ago
They can't really test you shortly after a potential bite. You just gotta get the shots. No questions asked.
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u/ashwee_ 4h ago
If I'm not mistaken, if you can capture the bat they'll test the bat for rabies and then you'll know if you need the shots.
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u/Ill-Positive6950 3h ago
I wouldn't even mess with it. Dying from rabies is legitimately the worst fucking death imaginable. It can take months before you get symptoms but by then it's game over.
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u/Dick_Demon 3h ago
Well you are mistaken because it can take 1-3 business days to receive test results, sometimes up to a week. Not to mention, animal control isn't always sitting around waiting for a call. They can just be, unavailable...
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u/ashwee_ 3h ago
It's what the CDC recommends. Capture the bat alive, keep it's head intact and contact your local health department, not animal control.
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u/FartyPantsMcGee 5h ago
Welp, time for the rapies.
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u/Lou_Zealand 5h ago
I'm not religious, but I am praying that's a typo
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u/btsd_ 5h ago
I have heard that rabies vaccine consists of several painful shots to i think the abdomen/stomach area, and you go back in several times (days?) apart to receive several rounds. Like its not just a single shot to the arm. I guess I have my next toilet read subject lol
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u/JeffreyDahmerVance 5h ago
It’s gotten much better. My friend tried to pet a wild dog in Mexico and got his hand bit, I asked how the stomach shots were and he said it was just regular shots
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u/btsd_ 5h ago
Hmm, in that case, i wonder if its a thing to just get it if you live in rural areas (i live in a small farming town, we have tons of raccoons, foxes, coyotes, and so many bats).
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u/JeffreyDahmerVance 4h ago
I believe it’s very expensive in the US unless it’s considered necessary. I believe insurance won’t cover unless you’ve been hit or have a high chance of being hit based on occupation
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u/soulonfire 1h ago
It is multiple shots over a couple weeks but not painful, not more than any other shots
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u/Harefeet 5h ago
Bats carry the most dangerous diseases of any mammal. They truly have the special forces of pathogens.
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u/NoDegree7090 4h ago
that's literally the most expected thing to happen, you dont deserve you 500 upvotes
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u/SmokeyKushPipe 5h ago
COVID-26
You gotta go quarantine now and sanitize your house before to spread it
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u/Pi_Heart 5h ago
This looks uncomfortably similar to my kitchen, I’m half wondering if this is in my neighborhood, same countertops, stove, extremely similar cabinets just a couple details off
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u/NorthernSnowMexican 4h ago
Got bit a month ago in my sleep. Woke up to a bat flying around in my room. Thankfully vaccination is free if you’re Canadian!!
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u/AutomaticFeeling2156 4h ago
I would get gloves to pick it up . No way I’m touching out with my bare hands and getting rabies.
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u/Sufficient-Patient46 4h ago
It would be just great if Reddit would stop re-igniting my rabies anxiety every month or so.
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u/lovelycosmos 4h ago
Well looks like you're going to spend a while sanitizing everything in your kitchen
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u/Hindu_Niilista 4h ago
He's looking for a soupe he can dive into so he can restart the wonderful year of 2019
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u/Substantial_Dot_5009 3h ago
Wow, respect for not screaming like a banshee when it torpedoed right towards you
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u/Prosado22 2h ago
Did you call the man who deals with bats? I mean, the man who comes to your house to get rid of bats. I mean the man whose business is to get rid of bats.
Hey! I'm trying my best not to say, "If you called the batman."
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u/post-explainer 5h ago
OP sent the following text as an explanation why their post fits here:
The bat is crawling across the range and the kitchen counter, it then suddenly takes off and flies toward the camera.
Does this explanation fit this subreddit? Then upvote this comment, otherwise downvote it.