Is it legal for me to trap a bat?

The Problem with Bats

When bats enter your home, they start causing a lot of problems.

Not only will they keep you up by being active at night, but these animals also put you and your family at risk of disease. That's because bats are common carriers of rabies, and they spread histoplasmosis through their droppings.

Their guano is also problematic, as it smells and stains your home. That's not even mentioning the structural damage it causes.

That's why you want to get rid of the animals as soon as possible.

The Appeal of Traps

Traps have a certain appeal to many people. It feels like an active way of solving the issue, which is why some people prefer it to exclusion and other techniques.

Trapping and relocating bats is also a much more humane solution than killing or poisoning the animals, so many people think it's a good solution.

The Problem with Traps

Unfortunately, traps aren't as good as you might expect.

The first issue is that they aren't very effective, especially against large colonies. You'd need to buy a lot of traps to get rid of them all, and that isn't always feasible.

Some traps are also very inhumane, such as glue traps. These devices stick to a bat and prevent it from moving, often resulting in the animal starving or dying of thirst.

Legality of Traps

Yet the biggest issue with traps is their legality.

In some states, trapping a bat is completely illegal. In others, it's only illegal for some bat species. And oftentimes, you'd have to get a permit or license before you're allowed to trap any bat.

The reason is that bats are surprisingly helpful creatures. They eat thousands of insects a night, helping protect crops from these agricultural pests. By eating insects, bats also slow down the spread of disease, making them very useful to have around.

That's why trapping and killing them is illegal, especially since the animals are already endangered.

Alternative Solutions

Since trapping isn't an option, what can you do to get rid of bats?

Bat Houses

One option is to build bat houses in your yard. This provides the animals with their own home, so they won't enter yours. This is an excellent option because it keeps bats close enough to kill all nearby insects, making your home bug-free.

Unfortunately, this method isn't very useful if the bats are already inside your home.

Exclusion

Exclusion is perhaps the best way of removing bats from your home. It involves changing the environment to allow bats to go out hunting at night, but it prevents the animals from coming back to your home in the morning.

You can do exclusion yourself by getting an exclusion funnel or netting. As well as some caulk and steel wool to seal up your home.

You'll first have to find all the entries used by the bats and will then have to seal them all up, save one. Use caulk and steel wool for this, as it prevents animals from getting inside your home.

Then it's time to install the exclusion device on the last hole. After which you only have to wait until all the bats leave on their own.

Finally, you can seal up the last hole and be done with the bats.

Professional Help

Calling a professional is perhaps the easiest option. These experts know exactly what to do to remove bats, and they'll often use exclusion themselves.

They'll be able to remove all the bats in your home, guaranteeing the animals won't be back.