Rabid Bat Found In South Brunswick Home

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ — A rabid bat was found flying around someone's home in South Brunswick this past Sunday, June 17, police said.

The bat was found in the resident’s home in the vicinity of Brook Drive and Spruce Lane. The bat died and the residents turned it over to the New Jersey Department of Health Laboratory. The State Laboratory reported this week that the bat tested positive for rabies.

This is the seventh rabid animal reported in Middlesex County in 2018, and the first rabid animal reported in South Brunswick Township.

No humans or pets were exposed to the bat. Here's the breakdown of rabid animals found so far this year in Middlesex County:

June 17: Rabid bat found in someone's home in South Brunswick.

May 9: A man was trying to remove a rabid raccoon from his backyard in Middlesex borough when he was bitten by it. The raccoon was euthanized and the man received rabies shots as a precaution. This happened in the vicinity of Melrose Ave. and Mohawk Ave. in the borough.

Around May 9: A few days after that incident, a feral cat with rabies was found in the same area of Melrose Avenue in Middlesex borough.

April 28: A rabid raccoon was found in someone's backyard on Washington Avenue in East Brunswick. No human or pet exposures.

Sometime in March: A raccoon with rabies was found in Edison.

Feb. 20: A dog killed a skunk in the area of New York Avenue and Lincoln Place within New Brunswick city limits. The skunk's carcass was sent to a state lab, where it tested positive for rabies. The dog was up to date on rabies vaccines and showed no signs of the virus.

Feb. 5: A dog killed a raccoon in the area of Spotswood Gravel Hill Road and Garvey Drive in Monroe Twp. The raccoon was found to have rabies and the dog, which had been vaccinated, showed no signs of the virus.

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