Unique mayhem

[Bob_VT]

Okay...... I live in a home built in the 1850's...... dirt floor basement, laid up stone foundation, beams that are hand hewn and pegged and boards in the walls that could never be duplicated.

Over the life of the home many changes have been made.......

The wife and I have a collection of pets...... 2 Labrador retrievers and 3 cats.......

Well this evening there was a commotion in the kitchen ....... cat's running and something had their attention to the point when the dog's were also attracted.

With my "reading glasses" on from the living room I thought I saw a bird flying in the kitchen

My wife and I joined the chase and when we arrived in the kitchen....... it was not a bird but a bat. A really good size bat with about a 9-10" wingspan

Round and round the bat flew and then it landed.....took a breathe and flew again........ as it circled the room ALL the animals wanted a piece of it..... five animals running in circles and attempting to keep up with the direction changes. Kitchen.....living room..... dining room ....... a Keystone Comedy chase LIVE!!!!

Well I finally grabbed the bat when it landed in the dining room and had the wife open a window and released the little guy into the night air.

It was good to see the bat since there has been a disease wiping them out in this area lately.

Fun was had by all

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: Unique mayhem

Any idea how it got in ???
Been watching any of those vampire shows recently ??

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Unique mayhem

Any idea how it got in ???
Been watching any of those vampire shows recently ??

All the time have you met my wife the vampire lover!

Probably, through a vent on the roof and worked it's way down to the first floor OR through a crack in the basement and worked his way up OR one of the darn animal's let him in just for the fun of it!

 

[waterinthefuel]

Re: Unique mayhem

That's very dangerous. Bats carry rabies.

 

[Bucks45]

Re: Unique mayhem

Bob...I've read your posts on here for almost a year. Up until now I thought you seemed like a pretty level headed guy. Obviously not! Next time try to get your priorities in order, forget the bat, get the video camera!

 

[JustJason]

Re: Unique mayhem

Hehe.. Only in Vt.... or Maine... or NH...

Up there the dang moths are the size of small birds. Reminds me of a scene from the Dan Akroyd movie "great outdoors". My old golden whould chase squirels all day long, and it was nuts when ever 1 got into the house.

 

[LadyFish]

Re: Unique mayhem

I remember a bat getting into our camp when I was a kid and it got all tangled up in my Grandma's hair. Grandpa got the broom and started beating poor Grandma over the head to kill the bat and the tangle got worse. I don't remember how they finally got it out since all us kids went to one of the bedrooms and shut the door until the mayhem was over but I can still see Grandpa with that broom. That little episode scarred me for life and I have a death fear of bats.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Unique mayhem

I remember a bat getting into our camp when I was a kid and it got all tangled up in my Grandma's hair. Grandpa got the broom and started beating poor Grandma over the head to kill the bat and the tangle got worse. I don't remember how they finally got it out since all us kids went to one of the bedrooms and shut the door until the mayhem was over but I can still see Grandpa with that broom. That little episode scarred me for life and I have a death fear of bats.

Yes, my wife stayed clear................ because if that bat came close to my head ......... I don't have much hair left and absolutely none long enough to tangle the bat...... advantage to going bald!

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: Unique mayhem

I remember a bat getting into our camp when I was a kid and it got all tangled up in my Grandma's hair. Grandpa got the broom and started beating poor Grandma over the head to kill the bat and the tangle got worse. I don't remember how they finally got it out since all us kids went to one of the bedrooms and shut the door until the mayhem was over but I can still see Grandpa with that broom. That little episode scarred me for life and I have a death fear of bats.

That has to be one of the funniest things to be pictured in ones mind Thanks for the story LF. Only thing that would be more funny would to be there .

Bob, I've been told that if you get one bat in the house, there maybe more in the house somewhere. You may want to watch your house at dusk form the outside to see if there are more coming out somewhere. Bat droppings are worse than the bats themselves.

When I was a younster at home, dad would use an old tennis racket to subdue them........SS

 

[scipper77]

Re: Unique mayhem

I love bats! No I'm not a weirdo, it's just that my house backs up to some woods and bats are the best insect control anyone could ever ask for. We had one living behind our shutter last summer on our front porch. As my wife was cleaning the front of the house she sprayed the shutter with the hose only to see a little black arm reach around from behind the shutter.

Long story short when the bat was "coaxed" out of the shutter I was so exited to see one from so close. They really are cool little creatures, and a very positive presence unlike most critters that hang out near my house... mice, moles, voles, chipmunks, squirrels.

 

[sasto]

Re: Unique mayhem

.

Bob, I've been told that if you get one bat in the house, there maybe more in the house somewhere. You may want to watch your house at dusk form the outside to see if there are more coming out somewhere. Bat droppings are worse than the bats themselves.

When I was a younster at home, dad would use an old tennis racket to subdue them........SS

How true...They maybe living in or near the attic or roof. The best and humane way of eradicating them for us was watching where they exit at dusk and place moth balls in their home, forcing them to relocate. Keep the wife happy.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Unique mayhem

I am of the different theory........ let them live. They do a good job on bugs and they are visible nightly in my yard ........ if they have set up residence in my attic ........ oh well.

I like the mothball idea (I have a drum of naphthalene stored for my special effects work )to force them to move.

 

[aspeck]

Re: Unique mayhem

... have you met my wife the vampire ... ?

I'm telling Jenn what you said about her!!!!

 

[BF]

Re: Unique mayhem

we've had bats get in our cabin now and then... in our case they've either, 1) come down the chimney and somehow made their way out of a air vent of the wood stove, or 2) found a gap at the top on an outside wall which they crawled in and made their home within the wall itself. In the second case, we could hear scratching within the wall that started at night (at first we thought mice).

The solutions have been to cover the top of the chimney for the summer and disconnect the lower end from the stove and cap it inside and to caulk and seal with screen etc any gaps openings under the roof overhangs... (like you'd do for mice, but up along the roof line). So far we've been bat free for a couple years.

BTW, a fishing net is a good bat catcher... you can net and release them without hurting them. Are there lots of bats around? Go outside just as it's getting dark and look up against the sky... they're usually coming out and can be seen flying around. In the dusk, they look like birds, but fly goofier.

 

[angus63]

Re: Unique mayhem

Had a similar episode (self-inflicted) recently. After crabbing, I brought home 50 blue-claws for boiling. Getting them from the basket to the pot is always an adventure with the kids and wife. My son dropped a large one on the kitchen floor and my new lab puppy, Otis, had to investigate. The crab reared up and claws spread, dog got scared and turned away, crab latched on to his tail, and the fun began. Dog ran yelping through every room, knocking everything over, with the crab hanging on for dear life. Tackled the dog and smashed the crab with the meat tenderizer. A video would of been precious.

 

[scipper77]

Re: Unique mayhem

if they have set up residence in my attic ........ oh well.

Bats eat an incredible percentage of there body weight each night. If they are in the attic they will be pooping quite a bit. Very unsanitary and very hard to clean up after the bats are gone. If there is any evidence that they are in the house do something about it sooner than later.

I know with cleaning mouse nests just breathing in the air can get you pretty sick due to all the feces.

Both of my neighbors have bat houses in there trees. A much better place for them to live.

 

[Huron Angler]

Re: Unique mayhem

Both of my neighbors have bat houses in there trees. A much better place for them to live.

Yup bat houses are a cheap easy way to keep them nearby...but not in your house. They have gotten to be pretty common here for mosquito control.

 

[Philip_G]

Re: Unique mayhem

pretty sure I'd have run out of the house screaming, then set it on fire.

I HATE bats. Don't know why.

 

[further]

Re: Unique mayhem

Interestingly enough, my wife and kids and mother in law where at the lake house last week by themselves and low and behold a bat flies in to the screened in porch. Of course neither my wife or mother in law knew what to do and completely freaked out. Poor thing got stuck between the glass sliding door and screen. I, being about 2 hours away, ended up calling an animal control guy to help them out - took him about 5 mins and $75. oh well!!

Other experiences - Used to live in Eden, VT on Lake Eden and had all kinds of critter visitors in my house including raccoons, snow shoe hares, bats, skunks mostly as presents from my fierce huntress - the cat! The best was the flying squirrel - they are pretty cool!!

 

[rbh]

Re: Unique mayhem

Yup bat houses are a cheap easy way to keep them nearby...but not in your house. They have gotten to be pretty common here for mosquito control.

Yup-
build a bat cave, ERRR house

Alfred, to the bat bar.