If you see a damaging article about bats and rabies in a periodical or on TV, please inform BCI, then share the information in this article with the editors or producers. Ask your local health department for information about bats and rabies. If your local or state health department insists on needless scare tactics about bats and rabies, despite diplomatic objections, contact the appropriate legislators or other individuals who determine funding for public health issues. It remains, however, a step in the right direction. BCI encourages education about the potential risks of being bitten by a sick bat, but groundless bat rabies alerts do more harm than good, leading to widespread intolerance and killing of bats, as well as to extreme anxiety and financial costs to people.
People terrified by false alarms about bats and rabies are vulnerable to many kinds of exploitation.
This excerpt from a nationally run ad by a New York company is similar to ads common in the 1960s and '70s, the period of America's greatest bat losses. If misinformation is not promptly countered, there will again be a proliferation of such ads and associated losses. In Austin, Texas, BCI and the city and county health departments collaborate in educating children to safely enjoy neighborhood bats without fear, as illustrated by this jointly published brochure. Although this species has an outstanding record of safe coexistence with people, it is the one most often eradicated in large numbers due to false alarms regarding rabies. Views reflected in the letter are Hicks' own and do not necessarily represent the views of his department.