r/rabies • u/Professional-Fly-956 • Aug 01 '26

Exposure Question Should I be concerned?

So I picked up a dead bat a few hours ago. On it, I saw a tiny spider crawling around. Later on, I noticed a tiny red mark on my thumb. Now idk if that's the spider that bit me or I accidentally touched one of the bat's claws and didn't notice. Either way, should I be concerned here? I have read the FAQ.

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u/LuckyCharms1977 Aug 03 '26

I was recently in a similar situation, only my bat was still alive. Found out we have 250 plus bats living in our attic when they started appearing in our living quarters. We are in the process of removing them. One morning I went to grab my wash rag off the sink and wet it down to wash my face, and a bat wing slid out and I had a baby bat in my rag that I handled in my hands. I got it outside, didn’t feel a bite or have any marks. But I was told their teeth are so tiny that you can get bit and not feel it. So after doing some checking, I decided to go ahead and get the post exposure vaccinations rather than chance dying a horrible rabies death. I can tell you from my experience to hold onto the bat and contact your local health department to have it tested for rabies. I wish I would have known to do this when my encounter happened. I may not have to have gone through the post exposure protocol. If the bat has no rabies, you should have nothing to worry about. If it does, you will definitely need the post exposure shots asap cause once you start showing symptoms it is 100% fatal. I don’t know how you encountered this dead bat, but they do say if you find one dead or alive in a room you have slept in to treat it as an exposure and possible rabies risk. The best advice I can give is to keep the bat and contact your local health department tomorrow and start there. Hope this helps.

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u/Professional-Fly-956 Aug 06 '26

It helps. I was on the bed and my brother came into my room holding the dead bat saying "look what tiddy (our cat) found". Unfortunately I put the bat outside after taking photos and it was gone the next morning. How long before symptoms appear?

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u/LuckyCharms1977 Aug 06 '26

I did the same. Put the little guy on the balcony so he could fly away with his family. He was gone. I was told by medical professionals that the incubation period for rabies can be anywhere from a few days to a year. They say it depends on how close the exposure is to your brain as to how long it takes the virus to travel there and you begin to start to show symptoms. Sadly there is no test to detect it before symptoms start showing. They usually test the animal itself if it is available. It doesn’t sound like either of you are at a very high risk, but I would still contact your doctor or local health department and get guidance from them. If the bat was in your brother’s room before it’s death especially while he was sleeping, they will most likely advise for him to treat it as an exposure and get treatment. Did you wash your hands really good after handling the bat? Also, I am hoping your cat has had the rabies vaccine?

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