With the cooler weather we have been having more bats in the house. Art has been getting pretty good at getting rid of them- he hardly screams at all. Last week when his parents were visiting there was a bat flying around and Art had thought he had gotten it. After I had gone to bed I heard a lot of commotion downstairs so I opened our bedroom door asking what was going on. Art said, "I guess I didn't get the bat and we're trying to get it now." So Art and his parents (because I wasn't going to help- I'm afraid and a princess who needs her sleep) managed to get the bat outside with much shouting and laughter. I would have joined their party if there hadn't been the chance that a bat would get stuck in my hair. The next day Art's parents presented us with a wondful gift- a bat catching net (well, it's a fisherman's net, but the idea is the same). We had been using blankets to herd bats outside or to catch and release them, but we had to be quick because bats are fast (as a side note- when I say 'we', I really mean just Art). We haven't had a chance to use it yet, but I'm sure we will.

Last night when we went to bed I noticed something in the window fan:

In case you can't guess what that curled up shape is, it's a bat. It's gross that there is a dead animal in my bedroom, but what makes me even more uncomfortable is that it hasn't been there very long. I pass by that window fan every night and every morning but last night was the first I noticed it. What upsets me about this is that there was a bat flying around my bedroom and I didn't even know it. How many bats are in my house every night, flying around my head while I'm asleep? What if I were to wake up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and one flew into my face?? This is unacceptable. I just wish I knew how they were getting in. The attic door has been closed for weeks and the windows are all shut by the end of the day. My only guess is that they are flying in through the dog door, up the stairs and into the rest of the house. Do I close the dog door and make Buddy hold it until morning like a normal dog? Or do I continue to pamper him and leave the door open on the off-chance that he might want to actually go outside alone after dark?