Every year a team of bat carers in the Durham Bat Group area care for bats that need our help. We get calls via the Bat Conservation Trust (BCT) Bat Care Helpline, our website or through our network of contacts.
On top of our work in Durham Cathedral (that’s another story), last year we cared for 147 bats from 7 different species. This included rehabilitating pups back to their roosts.
Lauren is our bat care co-ordinator, and she makes sure we are all in touch and supported. We have a WhatsApp group and more experienced bat workers are always on hand to support newer members. New bat carers can be mentored by being matched with an experienced carer for support or to initially learn more about bat care before deciding whether they feel they can care for bats. We have a crossover of members from other areas, particularly Northumberland and Cleveland Bat Groups and share training, support and ideas.
We now have joint training events hosted by the National Trust. Here are some pictures of one from last year held at Gibside. There were people from Durham, Northumberland, Cleveland and Cumbria all sharing cake and experience as well as star appearances from two education bats Beryl and Mabel. It was a chance to learn how to hold and examine bats.
Being a bat carer takes you to all sorts of interesting places, whether that’s posting bat pups back into a roost, or supporting a finder to release an injured bat they have found back into the wild after a period of recovery. It is very rewarding and the support from other carers is great. Where else can you send a query at 11pm about whether a bat pup in a remote area can in fact be fed human breastmilk and actually get an answer from someone who knows!
Sometimes we deal with sad situations where bats cannot be saved and we help that animal be humanely euthanised and released from pain.
What do I need to become a bat carer
Enthusiasm and a willingness to learn are the main ingredients. Bats are wild animals, it is illegal and unethical to keep them as pets and our role as bat carers is to rehabilitate them back into the wild as soon as possible and/or to relieve suffering. The ethics of what we do is important and we follow the Bat Conservation Trust guidelines on all our work with bats.
Captive bats eat mealworms (or other worms are available if allergic) so you must not be squeamish.
There is a very low risk that bats carry rabies virus. For this reason, bat carers should be vaccinated against rabies. This is provided free for bat carers, and advice can be given on how to get this vaccination. We also follow strict biosecurity guidelines to avoid passing human diseases onto our bats.
If caring for bats is not your thing, we also need ambulance drivers who will pick up bats and take them to a bat carer. This is a really important resource.
Durham Bat Group pay expenses for travel, agreed equipment (we also have equipment to loan) and some other items. Your time and effort are your donation, and you should not be out of pocket.
What do I do next
Drop us a message via our website and someone will be in touch. Or come along to one of our bat care training events and find out more.
