A dead bat found in Fremont’s Glenmoor neighborhood Tuesday has tested positive for rabies, city officials announced Thursday afternoon.
Someone found the bat at a home on Logan Drive on Sunday, called in Alameda County Vector Control and on Wednesday, the Alameda County Public Health Department confirmed that the bat tested positive for the rabies virus.
“We picked it up for rabies testing as part of a normal protocol and it came back positive for rabies on April 1,” Valerie Ahlgren with the Alameda County Vector Control said.
In a news release Thursday, Fremont police said no other animals or humans were exposed to the virus and no other rabies cases have been reported.
Alameda County Vector Control will be doing door-to-door notifications in the neighborhood, according to police.
“We recommend that our residents don’t touch or handle wildlife, to keep pets vaccinated, to call us if they see an animal that is having difficulty walking, flying, appears ill, so we can test it for rabies,” Ahlgren said.
Rabies is a fatal disease that can be prevented if the exposed person or animal receives a series of rabies vaccine shots as soon as possible.
If anyone thinks they might have touched or been bitten by this particular bat, they should call the Alameda County Public Health Acute Communicable Disease Program at 510-267-3250 and should immediately seek medical care.
Alameda County is home to eight species of bats, all capable of contracting and spreading the deadly virus. People who think a pet might have been exposed are urged to call Fremont Animal Services at 510-790-6635 and contact a veterinarian right away.
