On Thursday, Sept. 25, a bat was found outside the athletics wing on campus. The bat tested positive for rabies.

“As a part of our campus procedures, our teachers and staff are informed and asked to remind our students, as always, to stay away from any bat on the ground or in a ‘reachable’ location,” interim principal Courtney Acosta said.

If any students or teachers do happen to come in contact with a bat, they need to notify the office staff immediately. Office personnel will call the Round Rock Animal Control.

Since the bat had rabies, students and teachers need to know that the only way someone can contract rabies from a bat is if the animal bites or scratches the individual, or if saliva from the rabid animal gets in an open wound. However, bats have small teeth so a person may not initially realize he or she had been bitten. Rabies cannot be contracted simply through touch.

A rabid bat may not show symptoms and any bat found on the ground will need to be tested. However, if a bat is out during the day, chances are it has rabies.

Simply remember: do not touch a bat for any reason.