8filltheheart Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 My neice, 22 mos, pulled the grate off of an unused fireplace in their dining room (their house is about 150 yrs old). Her dad saw a bat fly out. They tried to catch it, but lost sight of it. They closed all the doors to that section of the house and shoved towels under the doors, etc thinking they had trapped it in that part of the house. Later on, her dad went to get something out of my sister's purse (in the main part of the house) and the bat flew off of it. It was sitting on the coffee table and my neice had been playing around there by her self several times. They caught the bat and it tested positive for rabies. She is now having to get the shots b/c there is no way of knowing if she was bitten or not. As terrible as that is......what a blessing they found the bat and were able to have it tested. Even more of blessing that it is preventable w/o the 21 shots in the belly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Alfred Academy Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 As terrible as that is......what a blessing they found the bat and were able to have it tested. Even more of blessing that it is preventable w/o the 21 shots in the belly! Those are blessings! Especially the part about the shots! How are they able to treat it now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gretchen in NJ Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Those are blessings! Especially the part about the shots! How are they able to treat it now? Good question. How do they treat it now-a-days? I am happy that she doesn't need 21 shots. Ugh! That would really be awlful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 I have no idea other that this (copied from a website) What does the postexposure treatment include? An exposed person who has never received any rabies vaccine will first receive a dose of rabies immune globulin (a blood product that contains antibodies against rabies), which gives immediate, short-term protection. This shot should be given in or near the wound area. The postexposure treatment also includes five doses of rabies vaccine. The first dose should be given as soon as possible after the exposure. Additional doses should be given on days three, seven, 14, and 28 after the first shot. These shots should be given in the deltoid muscle of the arm. Children can also receive the shots in the muscle of the thigh. Properly administered postexposure treatment for rabies has never been known to fail. Given the alternative is fatal.......there is only 1 known survivor from rabies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 (edited) I know someone in animal control who had to have rabies shots & she said they hurt. When there is an actual bite, they inject the globulin in a circle around the bite - in her hand, in her case. She said her hand hurt something awful. The series of shots afterwards she said made her really tired & feel like she had a bad flu. The animal ended up being neg so it was all for naught but better safe than sorry. I've heard that the rules in the interior of BC are that if a bat is discovered in a room with a young child, or an elderly person, or an otherwise infirm or disabled person, or with anyone of any age who was asleep - the person should have post exp. prophylaxis. I hope your niece recovers quickly. Shots aren't fun but they'll save her life in case she was exposed. Edited October 30, 2008 by hornblower posted before i was done ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snickelfritz Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 It's been.... maybe 20 years?? Yikes. I know we got at least 1 in the hip, but I don't remember if they all were. I do know they definitely were not in the stomach. Anyway, I thought that the Tetanus shot was worse. So thankful the shots are there. I'm glad your family saw the bat to get her treated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runningirl71 Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 but our daughter had to get rabies shots when she was that same age. We lived in Asia at the time and were vacationing in Thailand when she got her finger bit off by a monkey. There were cages full of monkeys at our hotel and the kids ran ahead to go see them. I was right behind the kids, but they arrived first and dd automatically stuck her finger in the cage. The monkey was still grabbing on to it when I got there, literally 30 seconds after the kids, and I had to pull her finger away. Anyways, when our daughter was treated, she got rabies shots like you would any other vaccine, just as a shot. She had to get a series of 5 shots. She is now 11. Hopefully, it is the same here. It wasn't any more painful than any other shot. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer in MI Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 Oh my goodness!!!! I'm so sorry! Thank God they can treat it. I remember a few years back we had a bat in our bedroom. I was awake when he flew into our room and know he didn't bite us. But I was terrified when we found out that it was protocol to treat anyone who had a bat flying around their room at night when they were sleeping!! Luckily, I found that out only after we had had the COLONY of bats in our attic removed. Yes, COLONY!!! Yikes! :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 Oh my goodness!!!! I'm so sorry! Thank God they can treat it. I remember a few years back we had a bat in our bedroom. I was awake when he flew into our room and know he didn't bite us. But I was terrified when we found out that it was protocol to treat anyone who had a bat flying around their room at night when they were sleeping!! Luckily, I found that out only after we had had the COLONY of bats in our attic removed. Yes, COLONY!!! Yikes! :grouphug: We had lots of bats in our attic when we were young. Having a bat fly through the bedroom at night happened quite a few times. I can't imagine getting rabies shots every time! We finally got rid of them. Ooo, they were horrible! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer in MI Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 We had lots of bats in our attic when we were young. Having a bat fly through the bedroom at night happened quite a few times. I can't imagine getting rabies shots every time! We finally got rid of them. Ooo, they were horrible! I know!!! I'm sure this was fairly common a while back. Our former house was built in the 1920s and there were lots of places for the bats to get in. How did you get rid of yours?? We had "batman" visit! Seriously - my kids called him batman. He did the humane thing and did something that allowed the bats to get out, but not back in. It was a VERY scary thing for us!!! I can't imagine that being common!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 Wow. What a blessing to have the shots, even though it may be hard on her. What a frightening thing to have happen though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remudamom Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 Bless her little heart. All four of our guys had to start the rabies treatment when a sick steer died. Eventually they decided it was not rabies, but we couldn't wait to see. We didn't do any shots in the stomach though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mims Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 A lady in a neighboring town here in Montana found a dead bat and took it to school. She showed it to several classes and to some kids outside playing sports. Apparently she gave a real interesting talk on bats and had wet wipes handy but . . . somehow they found out the bat had died of rabies and all those kids had to get rabies shots! It cost the school a bundle of money (their liability insurance covered some). The news never said the mother's name but I'm sure most people in the community know who it is. I kept feeling sorry for her and wondering how she felt. Of course the big kicker was that she was a nurse and should have really known better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valerie in MI Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 We had a bat fluttering around our bedroom one night this summer. We just caught it and let it go outside. It never crossed our minds to get it tested for rabies or to get ourselves tested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zelda Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 :grouphug: My mom had the 21 shots in the belly treatment after being bitten by a dog when she was a kid (they couldn't find the dog). She says it really hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 My whole family has gotten the shots - we have bats that for years would come into the house every year the first 2 weeks of July. My dh and I got them even before we had kids because we let a bat go and only later found out that they can bite you in your sleep without your knowing or leaving a visible bite mark - and since we let it go, we couldn't test it. Probably was fine, but with something pretty much 100% fatal, why take chances... We managed to keep them away from the bedrooms for years, but one finally got in that the cat ate. Just a wing left, so couldn't test, so the kids got the shots. They really don't hurt much, just a small needle in the arm. I find it kind of funny that my kids are only partially vaccinated, but have gotten the rabies vaccine... The vaccine is pretty long-lasting - after you've gotten one round you're probably protected for life, but if reexposed they can check titers and give you a booster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nestof3 Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 Praying that she is okay, and thankful for modern medicine. How frightening for her family! :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 I know!!! I'm sure this was fairly common a while back. Our former house was built in the 1920s and there were lots of places for the bats to get in. How did you get rid of yours?? We had "batman" visit! Seriously - my kids called him batman. He did the humane thing and did something that allowed the bats to get out, but not back in. It was a VERY scary thing for us!!! I can't imagine that being common!! I don't know if this is what solved the whole problem but I remember it vividly because it was so gross. My dad was a pastor and we lived in an old parsonage. Some men from the church came over and plugged all the holes they could find except for one. Then under the one hole they hung a 5 gallon bucket half filled with water. When bats fly out, they drop down. So they would drop into the bucket and drown. We caught around 100 I think. Once we got them all, they plugged the last hole. I remember one getting in once in a while and my dad hated them. Once he gave my brother and me each a tennis racket and practically shoved us down the basement stairs to get one. :lol: My brother had the bedroom at the top of the stairs so sometimes he would be laying in bed and then hear a whoosh sound. He'd hit the floor and yell, "Bat!" It's amazing we lived the adulthood apparently! It's scary to think about it now. We really could have been exposed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted October 31, 2008 Author Share Posted October 31, 2008 but our daughter had to get rabies shots when she was that same age. We lived in Asia at the time and were vacationing in Thailand when she got her finger bit off by a monkey. : Oh my goodness, how horrible for her! When we were in Brazil, we lived near this amazing bird zoo and we went there all the time. They had lots of other animals as well (and sloths and cappyboppys just wandered in and out freely). They do not have the regulations there like we have here and I remember hearing a child screaming after putting their hand in the monkey cage. If it had been my child, I don't know that I would have thought about rabies from the monkey. Bats, raccoons, skunks, and feral cats.....those I know to watch for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted October 31, 2008 Author Share Posted October 31, 2008 Thanks for all the replies! For those who aren't aware, bats are a concern. Here is a link to a story about the only survivor of rabies, ever!!, w/o a rabies vaccine. It is a15 yr old girl who was bitten by a bat while at her church's youth group. She didn't seek treatment. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002138204_rabies02.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runningirl71 Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 Oh my goodness, how horrible for her! When we were in Brazil, we lived near this amazing bird zoo and we went there all the time. They had lots of other animals as well (and sloths and cappyboppys just wandered in and out freely). They do not have the regulations there like we have here and I remember hearing a child screaming after putting their hand in the monkey cage. If it had been my child, I don't know that I would have thought about rabies from the monkey. Bats, raccoons, skunks, and feral cats.....those I know to watch for. We didn't think of it either, but the doctor did. Fortunately. Accidents like these are not uncommon in Thailand. There were tons of people in the emergency room the day we were there. And, dd is okay. She likes to "scare" people by telling them she can take her finger off!:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy in the NH Woods Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 When we lived in WI, we continually had bats in our bedroom at night. One late summer afternoon, as I began to make our bed (I had been lazy that day) I shook out the comforter and felt something drop and hit my foot. Sure enough, it was a little bat, lying there squirming :eek:. It must have been there the previous night, into the next day. I freaked and ran to get my dh who killed it with a hammer. (Tennis rackets work better for bats in flight. Ask me how I know.) I know bats are a protected species, but ... well. The worst part of the experience was that our baby daughter had been in our bed that night. Gulp... I never saw more bats than I did in WI. My elderly neighbor Hazel had one in her broom closet. She picked it up with her hands, spread its wings because she thought it was a bird, and it turned its little evil head around and bit her. Then she threw it outdoors, and had the rabies series obviously. I'm sorry, I know they are God's creatures, but bats terrify me. So glad the baby is okay!! Cindy PS: I hate monkeys. Now I really hate monkeys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blessedfamily Posted November 1, 2008 Share Posted November 1, 2008 I'm sorry to hear this happen to a baby. :mellow: Here's hoping she's so busy running around, she forgets it all in no time. :willy_nilly: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jensway Posted November 1, 2008 Share Posted November 1, 2008 I glad that she is being treated. Good thing they were able to get the bat. Praying she'll be just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1bassoon Posted November 1, 2008 Share Posted November 1, 2008 PS: I hate monkeys. Now I really hate monkeys. Um, Cindy - You might not want to read your kids Summer of the Monkeys. It's a great book, but the main character gets chewed up by monkeys!!!:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardening momma Posted November 1, 2008 Share Posted November 1, 2008 bat story: When I was growing up, I knew a family who had bats in the walls of their house. The mom kept a tennis racket by her bed at night, just in case. One night, she heard a bat flying around the bedroom. Without turning on the light, she took the tennis racket and swung, hitting the bat. She turned on the light and found she had killed her son's parakeet (or was it canary?). Oops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cillakat Posted November 1, 2008 Share Posted November 1, 2008 lmx-4 is a topical over the counter cream that completely blocks the pain from the injections for which i've used it:) I'm majorly shot phobic..... It's $30 for 15g and $60 for 30g. We keep the 30g tube on hand. applied 60 min prior to the injection, i feel nothing. sending wishes for speedy healing to your neice. :) K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted November 1, 2008 Share Posted November 1, 2008 The poor little thing. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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