Nebraska Zoo urges nearly 200 guests to get rabies vaccine after campers were exposed to wild bat

Nearly 200 people may have been exposed to a rabid bat while spending the night at the Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium in Omaha.

Zoo and Nebraska health officials have recommended that 186 campers who spent the night at the zoo aquarium on the weekends of June 26-27 and July 3-4, as well as some staff, do vaccinate against rabies, after the discovery of seven wild bats, including one that had infected with rabies, living in one of its establishments.

The scare began on July 4, when a camper woke up to a wild bat flying around his head and reported it to the zoo.

Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium Says 186 Visitors Who Camped Overnight At One Of Its Facilities May Have Been Exposed To A Rabid Bat

Zoo officials discovered that seven wild little brown bats (pictured), common to the region, had taken up residence at one of its facilities and one of them had tested positive for the virus. rabies.

Dr Sarah Woodhouse, director of animal health at the zoo, said daytime zoo visitors need not worry about exposure because bats are nocturnal.

Afterwards, the zoo found seven wild bats living in its aquarium and euthanized them. One of them tested positive for the rabies virus.

An emergency medical technician at the zoo could not find any bites or scratches on the camper van, but the zoo recommends that she and everyone else who stays overnight get a rabies shot.

“The bats we identified were little brown bats, a bat species common in Nebraska that anyone could find in their backyard or attic,” said Dr. Sarah Woodhouse, director of the zoo animal health in a statement. “It is not uncommon for a wild bat to be infected with rabies, which is why you should never directly touch a wild bat.”

The zoo reimbursed the campers and offered to pay for their photos.

The zoo is home to nine species of nocturnal mammals, but these bats in particular were not part of the zoo’s collection, Woodhouse said, adding that daytime visitors need not worry about the display because the bats are nocturnal.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that post-exposure prophylaxis, or injection of PEP vaccine, be given soon after exposure to rabies, both for bites and by other means of exposure. such as scratches or saliva, with additional doses of the vaccine given again on days 3, 7 and 14 after exposure.

Zoo staff found no signs of long-term bat roosting in the aquarium. The zoo said it had moved all overnight camping events elsewhere as workers tried to determine how the bats entered the building.