(A continuing series designed to give UtahPolicy.com readers a respite from the craziness of today’s political scene.)
My wife and I love wildlife. We’ve been spending most of our time amid the wildlife at our small ranch in a pretty valley at the base of the Raft River Mountains in far northwestern Box Elder County. It’s one of the most remote and isolated places in Utah.
We see deer, moose, coyotes, big horn sheep, rattlesnakes, rabbits, skunks, racoons, all sorts of birds — hawks, owls, hummingbirds, robins, blackbirds, wild geese, ducks, bluebirds, ravens — and so forth. Our nephew saw a cougar on a hike on a trail above our place.
But, absurdly, the most serious encounter with wildlife we’ve had came on a street in the heart of downtown Salt Lake City.
We usually return to downtown, where we have a condo in American Towers, on Sunday and Monday.
So, last Monday afternoon, my wife, Jan, was walking on the west side of Main Street near 100 South. She was delivering some of our free-range chicken eggs to a customer at a downtown business. As she walked, something suddenly hit her square in the forehead and then fell to the sidewalk. The impact jolted her and it hurt. She looked down and saw a bat — yes, a small bat — that came out of nowhere and flew right into her forehead.
She collected herself, went on her way and delivered the eggs. But thinking about it, she became concerned that the bat might have rabies. After all, bats probably don’t go flying around in the afternoon in downtown SLC smacking into people unless they’re sick.
So she went back to where the bat hit her, and actually found it down the street a ways. But as she approached, it flew across Main Street and was gone.
When she returned to our condo, we discussed whether the possibly-rabid bat might have bitten her. The impact did not break the skin and she did not feel a bite, only a thump. But after talking with a few people, especially our son, Golden, who had previously had his own encounter with a bat at the ranch, we decided to consult with medical experts.
We learned from Lisa Perkins, immunization coordinator at the Bear River Health Department, that anyone who comes into physical contact with a sick bat should probably have rabies shots. Bats have such tiny, sharp teeth that a bite might not draw blood, leave a mark, or even be felt. But it still might infect someone with rabies.
We were back at the ranch by then, so we called around to find a clinic or hospital that had rabies shots (which are quite expensive) available. So, Wednesday afternoon, Jan got the first round of rabies shots after an hour and a half drive to the Logan Intermountain InstaCare. She got shots in both arms and one in her forehead. She had to return for another shot on Saturday, and has two more rounds to go.
I’m not sure what the lesson here is. But it is quite remarkable that with all our interaction with wildlife in the wild places, it was in downtown SLC where the wildest encounter took place.
