Will County — The Will County Health Department has issued a warning reminding residents to take extra precautions around wild animals after three bats in the area recently tested positive for rabies.

The infected bats were identified in Joliet, Homer Glen and Plainfield, and an additional 68 bats have tested positive in the state this summer, including in Cook, DuPage, Lake, Kankakee and McHenry counties, the health department said in a news release.

Rabies affects the nervous system and is fatal if not treated quickly. Humans can contract rabies if they are bitten by or have close exposure to the saliva of an infected animal, and bats are a common carrier.

Although most exposures come from bites, the Illinois Department of Public Health said a person should consider themselves exposed to rabies if they wake up and find a bat in their room or house since bat bites can be hard to see with the naked eye.

Residents are advised to not kill or release a bat that is discovered in their home, but rather to contact animal control immediately and keep the animal contained until help arrives.

This can be done by closing it in a room or carefully trapping it in a ventilated box or container without touching it. Bats that are active during the day or cannot fly are more likely to be rabid, but any bat that bites or is found indoors needs to be tested for rabies to determine whether humans or pets who were exposed need medical treatment, the health department said.

If testing cannot be conducted or someone has definitely been bitten, preventive treatment for rabies and other infections will be needed. Rabies is treatable within a few days of exposure, but the IDPH recommends seeking medical attention immediately.

“Rabies is a fatal but preventable disease,” IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra said in a statement. “It is important that Illinois residents know how to prevent rabies exposure to protect themselves and their loved ones.”

The best way to prevent rabies exposure is to vaccinate all pets against rabies and to avoid exposure to wild animals, including by monitoring pets, educating children about the risks of strange animals, keeping garbage cans closed and securing your home against bats. Additionally, the IDPH advised that residents not take in wild animals as pets.

If someone finds an injured animal, they should contact animal control and not try to care for it on their own, the health department said.