Wildlife & Encounters

Coyotes, raccoons, skunks, foxes & bats — and rabies

The plain answer: these are the animals you'll most likely meet around your home, and they're mostly harmless if you keep your distance and don't feed them. But they're also Missouri's main rabies carriers — so don't handle wildlife, and treat any bite, scratch, or a bat in the room as a possible exposure.

Rabies — the one thing to take seriously

Who carries it, and why prompt care works

Rabies in Missouri is carried mostly by bats and skunks, though foxes, raccoons, and unvaccinated pets and livestock can carry it too. A sick animal may act strange — but not always. Rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms appear, yet it's nearly 100% preventable with prompt treatment before symptoms start.

If you're bitten, scratched, or exposed to saliva

If you're bitten, scratched, or get an animal's saliva in a wound or your eyes, nose, or mouth: wash and flush the area with soap and warm water for 10–15 minutes, then seek medical attention right away and call your county health department. Don't wait. Keep your pets' rabies shots current.

Bats

Missouri has at least 14 kinds of bat. Most are declining, and all are protected — it's against the law to kill one except under specific nuisance rules. Bats eat huge numbers of insects, so the goal is almost always to give them room, not to harm them.

Bats are the mammal most often found with rabies here, but fewer than 1% of WILD bats are infected. (A higher share of the bats sent in for testing come back positive — because those were already suspect.)

A bat in the house — no one had contact

If you are SURE no person or pet had contact — no one was asleep in the room, and no child or impaired person was present — close the interior doors, open an outside door or window, and let the bat leave on its own. Never use bare hands.

A bat in the house — contact was possible

If contact was possible — someone was asleep, it was in a child's room, or it was near someone who can't reliably say they weren't bitten — treat it as a possible exposure. Bat bites can be tiny and easy to miss. If you can contain the bat safely (never with bare hands), do so for testing, and call your county health department for guidance.

Cleaning up bat droppings

Don't stir up the dust

Don't dry-sweep or vacuum bat droppings — that puts spores into the air (a histoplasmosis risk).
Large accumulations should be cleaned by trained professionals.
For a small cleanup, wet the material down first, wear gloves, and use a properly fitted respirator — a paper dust mask is not a respirator.

One more reason to leave bats alone: white-nose syndrome is devastating bat populations across the state, but it's harmless to people. Sealing them out of living spaces and putting up a bat house gives them somewhere to go.

Coyotes

Coyotes are common across Missouri, including towns and suburbs. They rarely threaten adults, but they will take small pets and outdoor cats. Don't feed them, haze a bold one (make yourself big, loud, and unwelcome so it stays wary of people), keep pets leashed or supervised, and keep an eye on small children where coyotes are active.

Raccoons, skunks & foxes

Around the home these are mostly a nuisance, not a danger. Don't feed them, secure your trash and pet food, and seal the entry points they use to get into attics, sheds, and crawl spaces. They are also rabies vectors, so never corner or handle one — and skunks will spray.

Pets & wildlife

Keep cats indoors where you can.
Leash dogs in parks and conservation areas.
Don't let dogs chase elk, deer, bears, coyotes, or snakes.
Keep your pets' rabies vaccinations current.
Feed pets indoors so you don't draw wildlife.
Supervise small dogs at dawn and dusk where coyotes are common.

Before you act

Missouri Porch explains; the experts decide.

Last checked: 2026-06-18. Animal facts and wildlife rules change — and a bite, sting, or exposure is a medical question, not a website question. When in doubt, make the call.

This is general information, not medical or legal advice. For a bite, exposure, or emergency, call your doctor, your county health department, Poison Control (1-800-222-1222), or 911. For wildlife rules, check with MDC.

Heads up: A bat bite can be tiny and easy to miss. If a bat was in a room with someone sleeping, a young child, or anyone who can't say for sure they weren't touched, treat it as a possible exposure and call your county health department.

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