Do you think you know everything there is to know about removing bats from your property? You might just be surprised by how much you don't know – it's a field that even the experts need to keep training to be on top of. Take bat guano as one example; the feces of all animals must be sorted out and cleared away once the infestation itself has been dealt with, but the droppings and other biological matter left behind by bats really could be many times more dangerous – even life-altering – than you first gave it credit for. Before you don those gloves and start scrubbing, here are 5 things you probably didn't know about bat droppings … but should:



1 – Bat guano and urine are corrosive and can cause structural problems
Bat urine and droppings have high levels of acidity and this means that they are corrosive. With enough of a buildup of the stuff, the material could almost burn through materials that include wood, carpet, drywall and more. Not only that, bat guano will be heavy in high amounts, and when that is added to the water-damage that can also arise, you have a potentially dangerous situation. One day you will be quite happily watching TV in the lounge, and then the next you are covered in bat droppings (which are dangerous – see our second point below), looking up at a giant hole in the ceiling that goes right up into the attic.

Yes – if you leave the problem for long enough, it really could be THAT bad. Bat poop and urine could create huge structural problems if it is not cleared away.

2 – Bat guano is disease-ridden
Have you heard of a disease called Histoplasmosis? It's a pretty vague disease that can either affect the sufferer with a range of symptoms, or with no symptoms whatsoever. The fungus disease spores that cause it are commonly found in the droppings of bats, as well as birds, and once the feces becomes dusty and dry, the spores can then be sent into the air, just like dust, and inhaled.

If you are a fit and healthy adult, you'll probably find that you get no symptoms whatsoever, or you might just experience a few vague symptoms, such as a bit of a cough, headache and some muscle aching. If you are not a fit and healthy adult, however, there's a chance that Histoplasmosis could really affect you, causing lung infections and further damage. In very severe case, such as in those who already suffer with immune system problems, the condition can be fatal.

3 – Bat guano can cause mould and mould-related health concerns
Bats like warm and dry environments, which is often what draws them right into your attic. Hot air rises, so all the heat from the rest of the building will collect up there, and the conditions will be perfect for a growing bat colony to flourish … … And a growing mould problem, too.

Mould can irritate or create allergies, has been linked to cancer, can cause respiratory problems and infections, has also been linked to infant death syndrome and miscarriage, can wreak havoc with asthma sufferers, and more. Those are just the adverse effects that living in a moldy household could have on your body. The repercussions on the building itself are widespread. Water damage and rot, weakened beams or structures, a weird smell that no one appreciates very much … the building could literally fall down around you. That would only happen in cases that were ignored for many, many years, admittedly, but the point is – mould isn't good for you, and bat guano causes it.

4 – Bat guano will attract flies, maggots, ants, cockroaches and more
A bat can poop around thirty times a day or so, which is quite a lot of poop. If you have a hundred bats in that colony, you have three hundred potential bat poops per day. Every day. Even if they were only to poop a little bit each time (which they do), it wouldn't take long for that to build up. Alongside all of the problems that we have already mentioned, there are a few more to face yet, such as other insects. One animal infestation problem could very easily turn into more than one animal infestation, and it happens before you've even had a chance to identify the first one in some cases. Bat guano will attract all sorts of other pests, including maggots, flies, cockroaches, ants, and more.

Bats themselves can bring fleas, mites, and ticks to the table, and let's not start talking about bat bugs yet. (They are a real thing; similar to bed bugs, but they feed on bats.) Even dead bats will attract scavengers, such as rats, mice, opossums, raccoons, skunks, that kind of thing. All animals attract other animals. That's the way of the world.

5 – Bat guano will give off an awful smell
In fact, any wild animal will give off an awful smell eventually. Wild animals just … smell. They smell musty and slightly damp; a bit dirty perhaps? Because bats live up in the attic (usually), many homeowners aren't aware that they have a bat problem until they start to smell something a bit funky. They might also hear some flapping around. Very few homeowners spot bats flying in and out of their home at sunrise and sunset, unless they just so happened to be out in the yard at that time.

Bats can live in attics for sometime before they are known about, and at the speed at which these animals defecate, it won't take long before there is a very big pile of poop to sort out, and a rather nasty smell emanating from it too.

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