Rabid bat found in West Tisbury

Updated 1 pm 

A bat found at a West Tisbury home has tested positive for rabies following a state necropsy. As a result of the rabies finding, a dog has been quarantined for 45 days, West Tisbury animal control officer Anthony Cordray told The Times.

The home where the bat was found is located near the Tisbury line in the vicinity of Lambert’s Cove Road, Cordray said. The bat was found on a window screen by homeowners on Thursday, he said. One of the homeowners removed the screen to be rid of the bat and in the process, it flew away, he said. Sometime later the bat was found in the mouth of the homeowners’ dog. The dog and the homeowners are not believed to have been bitten by the bat, Cordray said. The dog, a small mixed breed, is under home quarantine, he said, and therefore cannot be outside the home without a leash, cannot have contact with other animals, and cannot have contact with people other than those who routinely are in its presence, he said. The dog owners have been instructed on the signs of the disease. Cordray described the bat as approximately three inches long, with characteristic features of the little brown bat.

Cordray cautioned the discovery of a second rabid bat on the Vineyard isn’t necessarily a cause for alarm. A bat found in the Mink Meadows area of West Chop in February was the first positive case of rabies reported on Martha’s Vineyard. Bats on the Cape and elsewhere in Massachusetts sometimes harbor rabies, he said, and they can fly to the Island, carrying it with them. 

Rabies is a viral disease that ultimately infects the brain. Unless medical treatment is administered in time, the disease is fatal. Bats are the leading transmissional animal for rabies in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control. 

The dog has both a rabies vaccination and a booster, according to Cordray and West Tisbury health agent Omar Johnson. Johnson said he’s been in communication with the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources concerning the bat. 

Updated to include more information.