Bats In The House

If you've got bats in the house, the first thing to say is that bats are gentle animals and won't usually attack people. If they're scared, they might bite though, so if a bat's flown into a living area and you're able to catch it, always wear a thick pair of gloves.

It's best to wait until it has landed somewhere before doing this.

To minimise direct contact, as well as wearing gloves, place a box over it and then slide a piece of paper or card under the bottom.

Make some air holes in the box lid and if it's not injured or a baby, release it outside if it's after sunset or wait until evening if it's daytime.

Taking off from the ground needs a lot of energy, so it's better to let them out of the box on a raised area like a wall. This lets them free fall for a short distance, which provides the momentum for flight.

To make the bat more comfortable, the Bat Conservation Trust recommends putting some cloth in one of the box's corners and some water in a shallow container (if it's not a baby).

Baby bats also need warmth so if you've got a hot water bottle, putting it underneath the box will create the right temperature inside it.

It's sometimes difficult to tell whether a bat is a baby or not. Blow gently on its fur and if it parts, then this probably means it's not that young.

Turn off or dim the light and leave the window open to encourage a bat to fly out if one wanders into your room during the night. Leaving the light on will make the bat think it's bed time.

Do you keep finding bats in the house? If so, it might be because you've recently moved things round in your attic and blocked their usual exit points. So it may be worth going back to move things away from the attic walls.

It's illegal to harm bats or disturb roosts in the UK so if you suspect that they've got one in your home, contact your Statutory Nature Conservation Organisation for advice and a free roost visit.

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