Three more rabid bats found in McHenry County

If you find a bat near or inside your home, chances are, it has rabies.

Three more brown bats, found in McHenry, Crystal Lake and Island Lake, have tested positive for the virus, bringing the county's total number to eight this year, officials said Tuesday.

If they're hanging around a home, it usually means the bats are infected with rabies, the sometimes deadly disease that attacks the central nervous system, said Deborah Quackenbush, a spokeswoman with the McHenry County Health Department.

Normally, bats embrace the wild, shying away from humans and their dwellings, she said.

Two of the three bats were discovered in bedrooms.

The third was in a garage.

"That's not their natural habitat," Quackenbush said.

In 2007, the county set a record with 13 rabies-infested bats discovered, the news release said.

Since the beginning of the year, 32 people have received rabies vaccinations as precautionary measures.

Bats are the lone animals in the county to test positive for rabies this year, according to a news release.

This year, five other rabid bats were found in Cary and Woodstock.

If you find a bat on your property, trap it with a large container and call authorities to euthanize the animal and test its brain for rabies.

The phone number to the McHenry County Animal Control Department is (815) 459-6222.