Feeding
Food sources
- In the wild, UK bats feed on insects, normally taken on the wing. This is not possible for bats brought into care and as such, alternative food sources are used.
- Live mealworms are the primary food given to captive bats and can be purchased from an exotic pet shop or online supplier.
- A small amount of tinned cat or dog food has been used by some individuals in an emergency. The pet food should be mixed with water to make a paste (and offered on the end of a teaspoon or a small, clean paintbrush).
- Mealworms are obtained for bats spending more than a day in care.
- Bats in care will not be familiar with alternative foods such as protein pastes or dog/cat food and will need to be fed initially (i.e. food put into their mouth).
How to feed
- For new casualties (who will be unfamiliar with this food type) the mealworm should be decapitated and the insides squeezed out into the bat’s mouth (see H&S>Mealworm allergies).
- Gradually the bat can be offered the whole mealworm (still with the head removed) and then eventually mealworms can be left in a shallow
dish in the bat’s enclosure. Please note that live mealworms should not be left in a cage with young or very ill/weak bats or those with open wounds as the mealworms will graze on the bats. - Bats need to be warm and active to take food and keeping the bat warm during feeding will help aid digestion and speed up recovery.
- Water should be available to the bat at all times in a small, very shallow, container. This should be replenished on a regular basis. For information on baby bats please refer to the Baby bats section
Nutritional value
- Although the use of mealworms for short-term care is acceptable, this food type is nutritionally deficient and must be supplemented with other sources for the diet of long-term captives. Please consult the Bat Rescue Manual for more information.
Pregnant bats
- It is important to be aware that female bats brought into care during the hibernation period, kept in warm temperatures and fed ad lib may give birth unseasonably early – depending on treatment this may be unavoidable.
- Early in the season it can be difficult to identify pregnancy. It is therefore important to consider that any adult female bat in care could be pregnant and treat accordingly.
- Certain medicines may not be suitable for pregnant bats – this should be discussed with a vet.
- Baby bats are usually born in June – extra awareness of the possibility of pregnant bats around this time is required.