Columbia, SC (WLTX) -- Bats can be tricky.
Dr. Gil Potter, Medical Director of the Department of Health and Environmental Controls' Region Three, says you can not tell if a bat carries rabies just by looking, so when you find one in your home, it is best to take precautions.
"There are very few bats probably that carry rabies, and they are low risk, however when in a home environment they become a risk if you have contact with them," said Potter. "All cases of human rabies in the last 20 years have been caused by bats."
"There are very few bats probably that carry rabies, and they are low risk, however when in a home environment they become a risk if you have contact with them," said Potter. "All cases of human rabies in the last 20 years have been caused by bats."
Potter says the chances of that happening are pretty rare, with about two cases a year.
September 28 marks World Rabies Day. Potter says while data shows bats as the feqeuent cause of the illness in the U.S., around the world other animals, like dogs, can be the source.
According to Potter, bats have tiny teeth that make it difficult to determine if someone has been bitten while asleep.
Potter says if you have bats in your home especially a bedroom or in a room with someone who could not communicate that they had a bite, it's best to see your doctor.
"Because rabies is an almost uniformly fatal illness if someone is infected with the virus we take all bat exposures very seriously," said Potter.
Last year, a Sumter woman died from rabies after being bitten by a bat. That was the first rabies death in South Carolina in more than 50 years.
Still, he says bats have their place in the world, and advises against killing them.
"They're good to have because they kill and eat a lot of bugs some of them are very important in pollination," he said.
If you find a bat in your home, he recommends trapping it, or shutting it up in a room, then calling out a professional who can have it removed and tested for rabies.