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Contact: Liz Coleman, Environmental Public Health, 360-481-2016
Contact: Jessica Baggett, Disease Control and Health Statistics, 360-338-5630
May’s rabid bat stats highest in 20 years
Touching a bat could expose you to rabies
OLYMPIA -- Since May 1,
four bats found in Washington have tested positive for rabies, the highest number identified in the state in the month
of May since 1998. The Washington State Department of Health reminds people to call
their local health department if they, a family member or a pet interacts with a
bat.
Health
officials routinely test for and find rabid bats, typically during the summer
months. DOH wants the public to continue to take appropriate precautions if a
bat – dead or alive – is found. Try to avoid contact with bats and other wild
animals; do not touch a bat if possible. If you do have contact with a bat or suspect
that a family member or pet had contact with a bat, try to safely
capture it and keep it contained away from people and call your local health
department for next steps.
It is also
important to protect your pets by ensuring their rabies vaccinations are
current. More detailed precautions and information can be found on the Washington
State Department of Health website.
While any
mammal can be infected with the rabies virus, bats are the most common animal in
Washington that carry rabies. In 2017, 22 bats were tested and found to have
the virus. This is up from 2016 when 20 rabid bats were identified. The
Washington State Public Health Laboratories tests
between 200 and 300 bats per year. Typically, between three and 10
percent of the bats submitted for testing are found to be rabid.
The DOH website is your
source for a healthy dose of information. Find us on Facebook and follow
us on Twitter. Sign-up
for the DOH blog, Public Health
Connection.
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