Animal Home Invasions in Easton

Bats are fluttering in bedrooms, birds are swooping down chimneys and one opossum managed to crawl into a house on Wilson Road.

Animal Control Officer Kelly Fitch told Patch a Wilson Road resident managed to catch the opossum in a container before calling an officer to release the animal back into the wild. 

The blotter at the Easton Police Department had several reports of bats in houses Monday and Fitch planned to have a bat tested on Tuesday. She said a Judd Road resident caught it and kept it in her freezer for three weeks before calling Animal Control.

"I've been getting a lot of calls of birds in chimneys too," Fitch said. "We refer people to a service."

Of the Aug. 7 bat complaint on Judd Road, Fitch said she believes the family cat had cornered the bat, making it even more important for the bat to be tested for rabies.

"Bats can bite you when you're sleeping," Fitch said. "If one has rabies, it can be spread by saliva or a bite."

On Aug. 9, a Vista Drive resident called police about a bat in her house. The case was referred to a wildlife removal company, which got it out of the house, according to police.

A dead bat taken from a house on Deerfield Drive at around 10:16 a.m. on Aug. 10 was brought to police to be tested.

At approximately 8:25 p.m. on Aug. 11, police said a bat that got into a house on North Park Avenue flew out.

A Bat's in My Room!

Fitch recommends putting up wire screens across chimneys and attic air vents to prevent birds and bats from getting into your home.

If a bat gets into your home, Fitch said you will want to have it tested for rabies in case there were any exposures to people or pets.

She recommends opening a window with the screen down, because the bat will be attracted to the outside air and you can trap it between the window and the screen, making it easier for the animal control officer to remove it for testing.

If a bat is in your bedroom and you run out of the room to safety, Fitch said to close the door and put towels along the bottom of the door because, like mice, bats can squeeze through tight spaces.