The Lenawee County Health Department (LCHD) was notified that a bat found in Adrian has tested positive for rabies. This is the first rabies-positive bat identified in Lenawee County this year. Rabies is a deadly but preventable disease. Rabies can spread to people and pets through an infected, or rabid, animal\u2019s bites or scratches. However, bats are the most common way that people in Michigan and the United States come in contact with rabies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
People and domestic animals should avoid contact with bats. Rabies can spread to people through bites or scratches, which may be minor or not immediately recognized. Any direct contact with a bat should be considered a possible rabies exposure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other possible exposures may include finding a bat in the same room as someone who may not be aware that contact occurred, such as a sleeping person, a young child, or someone who is unable to communicate or respond appropriately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Anyone who has been bitten by an animal or has had direct contact with a bat should contact the Lenawee County Health Department at (517) 264-5226, option #2, for guidance. Animal bites are required to be reported to both local Animal Control and the local Health Department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If a bat is found inside a home or there is concern that a person or pet may have had contact with a bat, do not release the bat if it can be safely contained. LCHD can provide guidance on whether the bat should be tested for rabies and what next steps may be needed. Testing the bat helps determine whether preventive treatment is necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pet owners should also protect their animals against rabies. Dogs, cats, and ferrets should be vaccinated against rabies by a veterinarian, and pets should be kept away from wild animals whenever possible. If a pet may have been bitten or scratched by a wild animal, such as a bat, raccoon, or skunk, contact a veterinarian for guidance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For more information, visit www.LenaweeHealthDepartment.org<\/a> or www.michigan.gov\/rabies<\/a>. For questions, contact the Lenawee County Health Department at (517) 264-5226, option #2.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Lenawee County Health Department (LCHD) was notified that a bat found in Adrian has tested positive for rabies. This is the first rabies-positive bat identified in Lenawee County this year. Rabies is a deadly but preventable disease. Rabies can spread to people and pets through an infected, or rabid, animal\u2019s bites or scratches. However, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":228,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-227","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blissfield","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=227"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":229,"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227\/revisions\/229"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/228"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=227"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=227"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blissfieldadvance.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=227"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}