RABID BAT FOUND AT SAN DIEGO ZOO SAFARI PARK

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By Tom Christensen, County of San Diego Communications Office

Photo courtesy photospin.com

June 14, 2016 (San Diego) - A bat at the San Diego Zoo's Safari Park has tested positive for rabies, the County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency reports.

The bat, who is not one of the park's animals, was found at the Oasis Deli in Nairobi Village on Saturday at 11:30 p.m.  It was carefully collected by park staff.  It was delivered to the County on Monday, where it tested positive for rabies. 

No human or animal contact has been reported. 

If you or someone in your family or group had contact with the bat, you are urged to contact the County as soon as possible at (619) 692-8499.

Rabies transmission can occur from a bat bite or if a bat’s saliva comes in contact with a cut or abrasion, or with mucous membranes, such as the eyes, nose or mouth. If direct contact with a bat does occur, wash the affected area thoroughly with soap and water and seek medical advice immediately.

Rabies in humans can be prevented by avoiding contact with wild, stray, and unknown domestic animals, ensuring pets are up-to-date on rabies vaccinations, and receiving prompt medical advice following animal bites and other significant exposures to potentially rabid animals.



 


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Rabid Bat Found at San Diego Zoo Safari Park

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PLEASE DON'T EVER HANDLE WILDLIFE WITH BARE HANDS, as is shown in the photograph for this article. Not only are you putting yourself at risk of being bitten and exposed to disease but, if you were trying to RESCUE an orphaned, injured or abandoned bat, and you handle it with bare hands, you have just given it a death sentence. Rabies-vector species such as bats, are required by the County to be euthanized (killed) once they have been handled with bare hands. The only way to determine if the animal has rabies, is to dissect it's brain. Those of us that rehabilitate bats that have been orphaned, injured or abandoned, have received rabies vaccine but, we still don't handle the animals with our bare hands. Always use gloves or a towel to pick up an animal or carefully move it into a box or container. Wild animals needing urgent care can be taken to Project Wildlife or the Fund for Animals, depending on the type of animal you are trying to help...call first.

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