Sask. bats: Home ‘infestation’ leads to dozens of rabies shots for family

For the last year, Rachelle Swan and her family have been stuck with bats living in their roof.

 “Last August is when it began,” said Swan. “And we ended up with a live bat in our living room, and it’s kind of just unfolded from there.”

At first, she thought it was a strange one-off occurrence. But when her family started hearing them in the walls and finding them in different rooms, it was clear there was a problem. But removing them isn’t so easy, as bats are a protected species as a result of a new disease that appeared across North America 20 years ago.

“It’s a fungus that grows on their nose, on their bodies, on their wings,” said Dan Riskin, CTV News’ Science and Technology Specialist.

“That fungus gives them this white appearance on their nose, so it’s called white nose syndrome. It’s only been around about 20 years and in that time it’s completely wiped out bat populations like crazy.”

The bats have certain times of year when they can be relocated, but just getting access to them is an issue.

“We don’t have any access into the structure of the roof without taking the whole roof off,” said Swan.

Swan says that could cost up to $100,000, and their insurance won’t cover the cost. She contacted the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment for guidance.

In an email to CTV News, the ministry said “bats can only be excluded (allowing exit but not re-entry) from buildings in May or September with a permit under Saskatchewan’s Bat Exclusion Policy.”

“Outside of May or September, considerations will be made by the Ministry of Environment on a case-by-case basis. There is currently no provincial program to assist property owners with bat exclusion costs. The ministry is currently working towards a solution with the homeowner,” the email said.

Riskin says it can be a difficult job to keep bats out once they know how to get in.

“The challenge is if you have a big building like that, there are a lot of spots a bat can get in,” said Riskin. “And the rule of thumb is, if you can fit your thumb through a hole, a bat can crawl through that hole. So imagine trying to seal up all those thumb-sized holes in most people’s roofs. It’s just not feasible,” Riskin said.

A “Rachelle and Kelly’s Bat Infestation” GoFundMe has been started by a friend to assist the family with the costs of relocating the bats.

According to its description, the family has received a combined “47 needles” in preventive rabies vaccinations.