Sorry, a little experience, a little logic and a little common sense is all I can offer.

Can only comment as one who spent a lot of time as a mine and cave spelunker observing/photographing several species of bats here and in a few other countries. While aerial fungal spores (if in high enough concentration) can cause lung problems, and even aerial rabies is possible, both are very unlikely in anyplace except right in the caves of very large populations of bats (and we have very few of those places in this country). Some people might be more reactive than others naturally, but with only minor precautions I never became sick and apparently never had any lasting problems from my contact.

Aerial risk can be pretty much nullified by wetting down the guano and/or wearing an approved respirator. Until guano breaks down it also would attract insect pests you may or may not want to deal with, some of which could be disease carriers.

I doubt it could be called hazardous waste, but if you do take it into the woods, at least bury it deep enough in a low/no use area that it will eventually break down naturally.

L.

HI Larry, Thank you--I was hoping you might respond; I figured you probably spent your fair share of time in caves. :)

I like the idea of burying it; may just do that and wipe my hands of the whole deal, although there is a part of me that will regret that nice fertilizer.

Of course, today I was SURE I had symptoms of histioplasmosis. LOL.

Thanks again!

Sorry, my comments were just to suggest some in's and out's, not to scare you away from it. Bat and bird guano are mostly ammonia based nitrogen (hence the smell). I know it is "mined" in many places around the world for fertilizer (including in the US), so it must be safe enough to use by anyone who is not asthmatic and is not deterred by any of the possible "outs".

If you really don't want to loose its benefits, put on a dust mask, brew your tea, use it and wash up good afterwards.

After all, even our "clean" drinking water that comes out of the tap can kill you. ;-)

Just a suggestion, but as we do with all "manures", I would compost it for a year. That usually helps to rid the "hot" manure of any bacteria, virus, or fungus. I would never use fresh manure of any kind unless it had been composted. Has yours already been composted?

Susan

Hi Susan, I don't think so; think it came right out of the house. It's been sitting in a black bucket for a while. I've got the bucket out back, getting lots of sunshine, so I would think that would make it nice and hot. I wonder if I could send it somewhere and get it tested? Someone must have done some work on this--how to kill of the fungus.

I'm sure I've been exposed to that fungus anyway. With our first house, the previous owner had kept chickens; the manure had built up, so we had to get it cleaned up. Didn't think that there could be anything to pick up.

My compost piles don't get too hot.

Larry, I know what you mean about how so many other things can jeapordize our health. I'm thinking about all of that chemical stuff that gets put on lawns, and I can smell ot from a mile away. People breathe that stuff in over and over, and you're right all the stuff that can be found in drinking water.

Take your bat guano and put it in a black plastic bag big enough to spread the stuff around once you have it closed. Add some water to it. Then place it in a nice sunny spot. Let it perk for several months, turning the bag occasionally. That should do it. The temperature inside will get really high--think about what happens to grass clippings and how fast they begin to break down when you bag them. You could add some of those clippings and table scraps for green stuff to your bag and have a terrific compost when you get finished.

Sandy

In some areas of the US, like here in Butte County, CA, bat guano is a significant health risk due to rabies. I would strongly suggest you talk to your local health department and see what the status is. You might wind up getting shots, but that's a whole lot better than getting dead.

I wouldn't touch untreated bat guano with a stick, and I'm vaccinated against rabies. But my rabbits are not, and I refuse to take that chance, however slim.

Just my semi-professional opinion--I'm a veterinary technician when not gardening. :)

Oh goodness! Thanks, I'll check it out; I haven't handled it; it's still in its bucket. What about the people who cleaned out the floor of the house that had the bats?

You can inhale the rabies virus?