09/04/2026
All about bats, rabies, vaccinations, and testing in Iowa
Story about two local people who were bit by bats
In December of 2025, a Moulton, IA woman discovered a bat in her residence, her 18 year old daughter used her baseball cap to catch the bat. She put it against the fireplace mantle.
The bat then started to climb out from the raised area where the brim is. Without thinking, the girl grabbed the bat with her bare hand.
The bat immediately bit her thumb. She let it go and it moved to her middle finger where it bit her again and stayed latched on then jumped back onto her thumb. She had to shake it off.
Once it was on the floor, her father threw a towel over the dazed bat. He put it in a terrarium in case it was needed for rabies testing.
During the emergency room visit, her wounds were flushed and cleaned. While she couldn’t remember exactly what each was for, she received four shots in her middle finger, three in her thumb, and one in each of arm.
She had to return for a follow up vaccine shot in the arm on three more occasions.
The mother said the ER doctor said a bat is a bat. It would be treated the same no matter what. Nobody offered to send it anywhere for them or encouraged them to send it off.
The family released the bat outside after they got home.
In hindsight, the mother said she wished she would have figured out how and where to send it in for testing because the total cost of the medical bills was $28,000. She noted that her family has a high-deductible insurance plan because they rarely get sick, so their out-of-pocket expense was $6,700.
In July of 2026 an 18 year old boy was working as a counselor at a camp in Woodward, IA.
While driving a golf cart, he noticed a bat on a tree. While looking at it, it swooped down and landed on the seat of the golf cart. The boy said it was doing a little jump and squeaking at him.
When he tried to swat it away, the bat jumped on his hand and bit his pinky finger. Then he flung it off his hand back towards the tree.
He noticed two little bite marks, one was bleeding and one was not. The bat was captured and taken to Iowa State University.
The hospital staff told the boy to wait on the post exposure vaccinations until the bat was tested. If it didn’t have rabies, there was no need for the vaccination.
The following day, the ISU lab confirmed that the bat had rabies.
The boy returned to the hospital where he received both the rabies vaccine and human rabies immune globulin (HRIG). Total, he received one injection in each arm and one in each thigh. He noted being surprised that the HRIG was not given around the wound site.
He received the remaining vaccination doses on day three, seven, and fourteen.
Bat Facts
The following information was taken from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, ISU Extension Office, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife websites.
Eating Habits
People often have bat encounters in their homes in the spring when bats become active and in the fall when the pups are able to fly.
They are an important part of Iowa’s ecosystem and provide natural pest control.
Bats are the only true flying mammal, and hang upside-down while roosting and sleeping. They are not blind. The use both sight and echolocation to navigate obstacles and catch insects.
Bats help control insects such as mosquitoes, stinkbugs, beetles, moths, and corn rootworms.
Bats usually leave their roost to feed for two or more hours around dusk. Some feed a second time just before dawn.
A small bat can eat one to two thousand insects per night. Big and little brown bats can eat 33-50% of their body weight each night, with nursing mothers consuming up to 125% of their body weight.
In other countries, bats are also fruit pollinators.
Iowa Bats
Iowa has nine species of bats: big brown bat, little brown bat, Indiana bat, northern long-eared bat, tri-colored bat, silver-haired bat, red bat, hoary bat, and evening bat.
The Indiana bat and northern long-eared bat are on the endangered species list.
Bats are protected under Iowa law as nongame wildlife. They cannot be killed, captured, or trafficked.
The exception is when a bat is in a human living space. It is legally permitted to kill it to protect human safety.
However, the Indiana bat and northern long-eared bat can only be killed in a living space if a human or pet has received a direct bite or potential rabies exposure where testing is required.
In Iowa, typically the big and little brown bats take up residence in human structures such as attics and barns.
Habitat
Native environments for bats include loose tree bark, tree cavities, tree foliage, caves, and rock crevices.
Female big brown bats roost together with their young in nursery colonies of 20 to several hundred bats. Males are solitary or will form small groups.
Little brown bats leave Iowa during the winter for warmer climates.
Big brown bats will stay and hibernate in both natural and manmade habitats like attics.
Bats follow air currents which is why they may end up inside the living space. If an interior room and the attic are different temperatures, bats will follow the air current through holes or cracks that connect the two.
Life Cycle
Bats have one to two pups per year. In Iowa they are born between late May and late June. They fly in about a month.
Big brown bats can live up to 18-20 years in the wild and can fly up to 40 mph.
The oldest living little brown bat in Iowa was banded and caught again after 23 years.
Exclusion
Non endangered bats inhabiting a structure can be excluded. A cone or net is installed over their entry point which allows them to fly out but not back in. When bats try to return, they follow the original air current toward the entry point instead of working their way back through the cone or net.
The exclusion device should be left in place for about a week.
During exclusion, other potential entry points must also be sealed.
Repellents like ultrasonic devices and mothballs do not usually deter bats.
Bats can squeeze through holes 3/8 of an inch (size of a dime) or small bats can get through ¼ inch cracks.
Common entry points are gable vents, chimneys, roof vents, under eaves, and any cracks or holes in the exterior.
Exclusions can be done March through mid-May and August through mid-October as long at the temperature is consistently above 50 degrees.
Bat Houses
Big and little brown bats will utilize bat houses for roosting. That being said, they don’t typically abandon their home inside a structure just because a bat house was installed. They still need to be excluded.
Bat houses can be installed:
• At least 12 feet above the ground
• Within a quarter mile of water such as a pond or stream
• With 20 to 30 feet of clear flight space
A bat house can provide bats with another place to roost while allowing them to continue feeding on mosquitoes and other insects around the property.
White Nose Syndrome
White-Nose Syndrome is one of the biggest threats facing bats in Iowa. It’s a disease caused by a fungus which kills large numbers of bats. Signs include isible white fuzz on the nose, ears, or wings; bats flying during the day in freezing winter weather; clustering near cave entrances; and dying on the ground. It is not a threat to humans or pets though.
Zoonotic Diseases
The primary zoonotic diseases associated with North American bats are rabies, histoplasmosis, salmonellosis, yersiniosis and external parasites.
Salmonellosis and yersiniosis are bacterial diseases acquired by contact and ingestion of f***l material from infected animals. Salmonellosis symptoms in people include diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal cramps. Symptoms of yersiniosis in people can include high fever and chills, headache, malaise, and swollen lymph nodes.
Histoplasmosis, cryptococcosis, and blastomycosis are fungal infections that can be present in bat guano. Symptoms of these fungal diseases in people include fever, cough, etc. and might develop to more serious illness in those with weakened immune systems.
External parasites such as fleas, ticks, bat flies, bat bugs and mites are occasionally transmitted by close contact with an infested bat or infested bat roosts.
Bat bugs primarily feed on the blood of bats. They only bite humans if their main host leaves, dies, or is removed from an attic, chimney, or wall void. When a bat colony vacates a building, hungry bugs migrate into living spaces looking for a new source of warm blood. Unlike bed bugs, bat bugs cannot successfully reproduce or sustain a long-term infestation on human blood alone. They can live for several months (or even over a year) without feeding at all while searching for their preferred bat hosts.
Information about Rabies
The following information was taken from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and National Foundation of Infectious Diseases (NFID).
What is rabies
• The rabies virus attacks the central nervous system, causing inflammation of the brain.
• Once symptoms begin, rabies is almost always fatal.
• After exposure, the virus travels slowly through nerves toward the brain. Because it moves slowly, treatment can prevent disease if started before symptoms appear.
• The incubation period is usually 1–3 months, but can range from days to years.
Rabies statistics
• Human rabies is rare due to vaccination of pets, animal control, surveillance, and prompt treatment.
• Since 1960, the United States averages one to three human rabies cases each year.
• Approximately 100,000 Americans receive Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) (medical steps taken to prevent disease) each year after possible exposure.
• Early rabies treatment (beginning with Louis Pasteur in 1885) involved numerous painful injections in the stomach but those fell out of practice in the 1980s.
• About 70% of human rabies cases in the U.S. are linked to bat bites.
• That being said, less than 1% of bats in the United States actually carry the rabies virus.
• Any bat exposure without testing should be treated though.
Bat exposure
• It is recommended to seek treatment when there is direct contact with a bat especially when resulting in bites or scratches.
• It’s important to note, that bites and scratches can be tiny and may not be felt or noticed.
• There is also “sleeping” exposure and “vulnerable individuals” exposure.
• Sleep exposure includes anyone who has slept while a bat was present.
• Vulnerable individuals include infants, young children, and anyone who is mentally impaired or intoxicated.
Symptoms
• Early symptoms of rabies include: fever, headache, weakness, general discomfort, and tingling or itching at the bite site.
• Later symptoms include: anxiety, confusion, agitation, hallucinations, delirium, abnormal behavior, and insomnia.
Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) (Treatment after exposure)
• Prophylaxis means taking medical steps or actions to prevent a disease or health problem before it happens.
• Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) includes immediate and thorough wound washing.
• Typically, shots are given around the bite site and in the arm which include one dose of Human Rabies Immune Globulin (HRIG) which is based on body weight, and four rabies vaccine doses.
• One vaccine dose is given on day 0, day 3, day 7, and day 14.
• People with compromised immune systems may receive an extra vaccine dose on day 28.
• Antibiotics may also be administered during the first treatment.
• Human Rabies Immune Globulin is a fast-acting medication containing antibodies against the rabies virus used in post-exposure treatment. It gives your body instant, temporary defense (passive immunity) right after an exposure. This protects you immediately while your body takes time to build its own long-term protection from the rabies vaccine. It works by neutralizing the rabies virus directly at the site of a bite or scratch before the virus can spread to your nervous system. Doctors inject as much of the weight-based dose (20 IU/kg) as physically possible directly into and around the wound. Any leftover amount is injected into a muscle far away from where the vaccine is given.
• The primary Human Rabies Immune Globulin (HRIG) brands currently available and licensed in the United States include HyperRAB, manufacturer by Grifols; KEDRAB, manufactured by Kedrion Biopharma (Kamada); and Imogam Rabies-HT, manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur.
• The two main vaccines used in the United States for pre-exposure and post-exposure prophylaxis are Imovax® (Human Diploid Cell Vaccine or HDCV), manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur and RabAvert® (Purified Chick Embryo Cell Vaccine or PCECV), manufactured by Bavarian Nordic.
• In the event of a new exposure (no matter how long it’s been since vaccination), only two boosters are given for that event.
• Patients who have been previously vaccinated should not receive HRIG again.
Pre Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) (treatment before exposure)
• Prophylaxis means taking medical steps or actions to prevent a disease or health problem before it happens.
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) rabies PrEP classifies the risk categories as follows and lists the recommended pre-exposure vaccination schedule.
• The two main vaccines used in the United States for pre-exposure and post-exposure prophylaxis are Imovax® (Human Diploid Cell Vaccine or HDCV), manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur and RabAvert® (Purified Chick Embryo Cell Vaccine or PCECV), manufactured by Bavarian Nordic.
• Human Rabies Immune Globulin (HRIG) which is a fast-acting medication containing antibodies that protects you immediately while your body takes time to build its own long-term protection from the rabies vaccine. It is not required for anyone who receives the two pre exposure rabies vaccines.
• A medical titer is a laboratory test that measures the concentration or amount of a specific substance—most commonly antibodies—in a blood sample. It shows if your immune system has enough protection against a disease like rabies. It tells doctors if you had a past infection or a successful response to a vaccine. A low result for rabies (less than 0.5 IU/mL) means you may need a booster shot. A result of greater than 0.5 IU/mL does not require a booster.
Risk category 1 Highest risk
• People who work with live or concentrated rabies virus in laboratories
• 2 doses, days 0 and 7
• Check titer every 6 months
Risk category 2
• People who frequently do at least one of the following: handle bats, have contact with bats, enter high-density bat environments like caves, or perform animal necropsies
• 2 doses, days 0 and 7
• Check titer every 2 years
Risk category 3
• People who interact with, or are at higher risk to interact, with mammals other than bats that could be rabid, for a period longer than three years after they receive PrEP.
• This group includes: Most veterinarians, veterinary technicians, animal control officers, wildlife biologists, rehabilitators, trappers (unless doing bat jobs), and spelunkers (cave explorers), and certain travelers to regions outside of the United States where rabies in dogs is commonly found
• 2 doses, days 0 and 7
• Either a one-time titer check after 1 year and up to 3 years following the first 2-dose vaccination
OR
• 1-dose booster between 3 weeks and 3 years following the first vaccine in the 2-dose vaccination
Risk category 4
• Same population as risk category 3, but at a higher risk for less than three years after they receive Pre Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP)
• 2 doses, days 0 and 7
Risk category 5 Lowest risk
• General U.S. population
• None
Iowa locations for bat testing
• Iowa has two rabies testing locations that accept both living and dead bats. The bats may be mailed in or dropped off in person. The brain tissue is tested so the head must be intact and not smashed. The bat also cannot be in an advanced state of decay.
• The public can check with their regular veterinarian who may (or may not) offer assistance with mailing the bats or euthanizing them. There could be fees involved.
• The State Hygienic Laboratory (SHL) is located at 2490 Crosspark Road in Coralville. It also has a location in Ankeny where bats can be dropped off and then are couriered to Coralville. That address is 2220 S. Ankeny Blvd. The phone numbers are 319-335-4335 (rabies lab) and 319-335-4500 (after hours).
State Hygienic Lab does not charge a fee for testing when there has been human exposure.
A representative of State Hygienic Lab said, “August has the highest testing volume that we do all year for bats.”
• Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory is located at 1937 Christensen Drive in Ames. The phone number is 515-290-1969.
The cost for testing is $60 for a dead bat or $85 for a live bat.
• Both laboratories accept bats from the general public and have similar protocol for sending in a bat. Dead specimens must be triple bagged, sent in leak proof packaging, kept refrigerated (never frozen), packed with gel ice packs, mailed in a rigid box that cannot be crushed, and mailed with overnight delivery.
• A rabies submission form must be filled out, and the lab must be made aware in advance that a specimen is being sent in.
• Testing is done Monday through Friday. Emergency Saturday morning testing is available with approval only, and no testing on Sunday.
