Bat and Raccoon Removal in Ann Arbor, MI
Help for bats and raccoons in Ann Arbor attics, and Washtenaw County’s own process for a bat in the house.
Calls route by ZIP to an independent operator where one covers the address; where none does, they come to Local Core Group, which runs this site.
In Washtenaw County, residents report a bat in the house online or by phone and are asked not to bring the bat to the health department, and the county does not give rabies shots itself. In Ann Arbor, city patrol officers do not remove skunks or bats, and the city points residents to private pest control services for wildlife.
How do you report a bat in an Ann Arbor home?
Through the Washtenaw County Health Department’s secure online form, or by phone at 734-544-6700 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. The county asks residents not to let a bat found in the house go until they have spoken with its staff, and not to bring bats to the health department; staff contact you with next steps.
Who to call about a bat in Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor and the rest of Washtenaw County
Washtenaw County Health Department
- 734-544-6700: during business hours, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays; the county also takes bat reports through a secure online form on its rabies page.
What to do with the bat: The county asks residents not to let a bat found in the house go until they have spoken with its staff, and to use the online form instead of bringing bats to the health department, then wait to hear from staff. Staff approve each bat before it is tested, and the county charges a fee for each one it approves. Never put the bat in the freezer. The county does not give rabies shots; if staff say treatment is needed, it starts in an emergency department.
Who removes wildlife: For a bat that has to be caught, the county’s steps say to call animal control or capture it yourself. In Ann Arbor, animal control runs through the Humane Society of Huron Valley, the police department’s partner; city patrol officers do not remove skunks or bats.
Source: Washtenaw County Health Department, Rabies (read 2026-10-27); Ann Arbor Police Department, Animal Control (read 2026-10-27); U.S. Census Bureau, Places by county, Michigan (2020 Census) (read 2026-10-31).
Every other county is on the health department lookup.
What does Washtenaw County say to do at night or after hours?
For a bat that turns up at night, the county’s steps are to call animal control the next morning to come trap the bat, or to capture it yourself. In Ann Arbor, animal control is handled by the Humane Society of Huron Valley under a partnership with the police department; the city also says its patrol officers will not take away skunks or bats, and directs residents to private pest control services for wildlife. Never put the bat in the freezer, dead or alive.
After hours, after a bite, the county’s advice is to go to an emergency department.
How many bats does Washtenaw County test?
Many, and few come back positive. The county’s own table for 2026, as of October 5, counts 112 bats among 127 animals tested, with two positive animals, both bats. The county notes that its 2026 counts are preliminary and are updated monthly.
What about raccoons in Ann Arbor attics?
Washtenaw County notes that no raccoon in the county has been found with rabies, and that raccoon rabies has never been found anywhere in Michigan. The CDC says raccoons defecate in communal sites called latrines, which are often found in unsealed attics, and that roundworm eggs passed in the feces of infected raccoons are not visible to the naked eye and, with adequate moisture, can survive for years. The CDC’s method for cleaning a latrine is on the attic cleanup page, and the raccoon page covers what removal involves.
What does the city expect of a landlord?
More than half of Ann Arbor homes are rented: the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey for 2020-2024 puts owner-occupied homes at 45.5 percent. The city’s tenant booklet, Rights and Duties of Tenants, says a rental’s roof, walls, ceilings, floors and foundation have to be reasonably weather-tight and rodent proof, and that the owner has to put up window and outside door screens by May 1 and may not take them down before September 30. The city’s rental inspection checklist includes the chimney cap, brick and flashing.
None of that names bats or raccoons, so it does not settle who pays for wildlife work. It does give a renter a reason to tell the landlord in writing about a gap, a torn screen or a damaged chimney cap. A bat inside the living space is different: that call to the county is yours to make, rented home or not.
Ann Arbor questions
Will Ann Arbor police remove a bat from my house?
No. The city says patrol officers do not remove skunks or bats, and it points residents to private pest control services for wildlife.
Sources for this page
Each rule and figure on this page comes from one of these pages, read on the date given. Agency guidance is described as guidance; it is not presented as law.
- RabiesWashtenaw County Health Department
- Animal ControlAnn Arbor Police Department
- Rights and Duties of Tenants (booklet, 2026)City of Ann Arbor
- Rental inspection pre-inspection checklistCity of Ann Arbor Rental Housing Services
- How Raccoon Roundworm SpreadsCDC
- Preventing Raccoon RoundwormCDC
- American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table B25003 (tenure), Ann Arbor cityU.S. Census Bureau (via Census Reporter)
- Places by county, Michigan (2020 Census)U.S. Census Bureau
Accuracy and corrections
- Last reviewed
- , by Local Core Group, which runs this site
- How pages are made
- How this site's pages are written and checked
- Sources
- All sources and the dates they were read: sources page
This page is general information for Michiganders, not legal advice. Rules are taken from the agency that publishes them and linked to its own page; agency guidance is labeled as guidance, not law. Rules and guidance change, so check the linked page, the DNR or your local health department before acting on anything time-sensitive.
Corrections. If a rule, number or contact here is out of date, point to the agency page that shows it through the request form or by calling 616-512-2425. Each correction is checked against the source, and the page is dated when it changes.
What Ann Arbor homeowners read next
Bat in the House
Do not let it go yet. Confine it if you safely can and ask your local health department whether it should be tested.
Bat in the house →Bat Removal and Exclusion
Many bats are federally protected, and the work is exclusion, timed around the summer maternity season.
Bats →Raccoon Removal
Usually one litter a year, an entry to close, and droppings that need careful cleanup.
Raccoons →Wildlife Exclusion and Entry-Point Sealing
One-way doors, then sealing every gap with durable material. The part of the job that stops a repeat.
Exclusion & sealing →Call about an animal in an Ann Arbor attic
When it happens, where in the house, and what you have seen outside. Your call routes by ZIP to an independent wildlife control operator where one covers your address, and that operator settles price and timing with you. Where none does, it comes to Local Core Group, which runs this site.