23/10/2026
🦇Pet & Public health alert! 🦇
There is a major starvation & mass mortality occurring in flying foxes (bats) 🦇in our region! Many weak, dying or dead flying foxes (bats) are being found and we urge everyone to be cautious with ANY interaction with them OR allowing your pets to interact with them!
Please do not attempt to hand-feed distressed or unwell flying-foxes. The risk of bites or scratches is a major health concern due to the risk of Lyssa! 🦠 Both to your pet 🐕 🐈 and you!
A very small percentage of flying-foxes do carry lyssavirus, about 1%. A scratch or bite means the risk of serious life-threatening illness for the dog/person concerned and routine euthanasia for the bat.
If your pet is exposed / interacts with the bats then the advice is to get them vaccinated -ideally within 24 hours and no later than 5 days!
If there has been a risky interaction, you can submit the dead bat’s body for testing (autopsy) to the DPI (with a $430 cost involved!) but this is the only way to know IF the bat was a carrier if the Lyssa virus 🦠
If you see some weak/starving bats, you can help them by putting fruit up in hanging baskets or wire garlands high enough to be away from pets, kids etc.
FAWNA NSW INC is doing their best to help bats recover but they getting swamped with requests and do not get any government support or funding for their work!
If you are bitten/scratched/contact with bat saliva then contact NSW Health on 1300066055 .
For further info go to: NSW Health website or DPIRD websites.
