DeKalb County leaves wildlife that has moved into a house to removal services.

What will DeKalb County Animal Control do, and when?

Situation	Who to call
Bitten or scratched by a wild animal	Scrub it with soap and water and have a doctor look at it without delay.6 The county's FAQ says to seek medical help and make a report with your local police,1 and the health department says state law requires all animal bites to humans in the county to be reported to DeKalb County Animal Control, (815) 748-2427.2
A bat inside the house	Keep it inside until you've talked to Animal Control. Where that's safe to do without being bitten, trap it under a large container or bucket and shut the door to the room.2 Call Animal Control on weekdays, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; after hours, call your local police, who contact Animal Control.1 Because bat bites can be very small and may not be felt, the county says to take special care when a bat turns up in a bedroom, a child's room or near someone who couldn't report a bite, and anyone who may have been exposed should get medical attention right away.2 IDPH also asks that the bat not be thrown out and that its head be left undamaged.6
A wild animal that seems sick or hurt	The county will help with a sick or injured wild animal on weekdays during office hours, skunks excepted.1 After hours, the county has said those calls go to a wildlife removal service.3 It also names a licensed wildlife rehabilitation agency as a place to turn for an injured or sick wild animal, and asks people never to try caring for one themselves.2
An after-hours, weekend or holiday animal emergency	Your local police department.1
A stray dog, or a pet that's gone missing or turned up	Report it to the local police if you live in a city or village; in unincorporated DeKalb County, report it to Animal Control at (815) 748-2427.1 Animal Control answers stray-dog calls on weekdays but doesn't pick up stray cats.1 Not a wildlife operator.
A healthy animal living in your attic, walls, chimney or under the deck	Animal Control says nuisance wildlife needs a wildlife removal service.1 The health department posts its own list of removal services, last updated June 1, 2023, and says the list is neither an endorsement nor complete.4 The Illinois DNR's 2026–2027 list names 33 permit holders under DeKalb County, this site's advertiser among them;5 you can hire any operator on the Illinois DNR list. A homeowner who wants to trap a raccoon needs an IDNR district wildlife biologist's removal permit before setting a trap,7 and the county's Animal Control page links their contacts.1

DeKalb County Animal Control, 2550 N. Annie Glidden Road, DeKalb: (815) 748-2427, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.¹

The Wildlife Line isn't part of DeKalb County or any city or village government.

Bats and rabies in DeKalb County

The county's first rabid bat of 2026 was found inside a private home on June 18, the health department reported.² Bats are the main carriers of rabies in Illinois, and a rabid bat can't be picked out by its looks: it doesn't have to seem aggressive or ill.² Warning signs include a bat that is active in the daytime, on the ground or unable to fly, and one like that should never be handled.² Sycamore had rabid bats in both 2021 and 2022; the Sycamore page has the details. The county's advice for the house itself is to seal openings and keep the home and outbuildings in repair so bats can't get in.² For a colony in the attic, read bats in the house.

The state's table shows two rabid bats in the county so far in 2026, none listed for 2024 or 2025, and three or four a year from 2021 to 2023.⁸

Year	DeKalb County	All of Illinois
2026 to Oct. 21	2	76
2025	None listed	48
2024	None listed	57
2023	4	83
2022	3	61
2021	3	40

These are bats people found and turned in for testing that came back positive, so a low count or "None listed" doesn't mean a county had no rabid bats.¹⁰ The table doesn't show how many were tested, but the state's year-end summary does for all of Illinois: 48 of the 1,601 bats tested in 2025 were positive, about 3 percent.⁹ An Illinois Natural History Survey mammalogist calls bats turned in for testing "a biased sample" and says fewer than 1 percent of bats in the wild are thought to test positive.¹⁰

In September, with 61 positives on the state's map, the state said bat submissions and rabies calls were higher than normal for the time of year, but that the numbers weren't alarming.¹¹ The state also says rabid bats can be found anywhere in Illinois, that only a lab test can tell, and that a bat in a home or any contact with one should be reported to the local health department.⁶

Stumbling raccoons and skunks: rabies, or distemper?

In August 2023, DeKalb County Animal Control reported an increase in confirmed canine distemper in raccoons and skunks that were tested after showing abnormal neurologic signs.³ In wildlife, distemper closely resembles rabies, and an outbreak in local raccoons can signal a higher risk for pet dogs, so the county urges keeping dogs' distemper shots up to date.³ Either way, a wild animal that stumbles or seems strangely tame is one to keep away from: bring children and pets inside and call animal control.⁶

For animals that have moved in rather than wandered through:

• Raccoon in the chimney
• Squirrels in the attic
• Animal under the deck
• Noises in the attic at night

Which DeKalb County towns does this guide cover?

• DeKalb: the city sends loose animals to county Animal Control on weekdays and to its police non-emergency line after 4:30 p.m.
• Sycamore: rabid bats were confirmed in the city in 2021 and 2022.

Nearby in Kane County: Hampshire and Elburn.

Questions people ask

Sources for this page

1. DeKalb County Health Department, Animal Control (including its FAQ). Checked Oct 29, 2026.
2. DeKalb County Health Department, DeKalb County Health Department Confirms First Rabid Bat of 2026, June 22, 2026. Checked Oct 29, 2026.
3. DeKalb County Health Department, canine distemper advisory, Aug. 3, 2023. Checked Oct 29, 2026.
4. DeKalb County Health Department, Nuisance Wildlife Removal Service Listing for DeKalb County Residents (PDF), updated June 1, 2023. Checked Oct 29, 2026.
5. Illinois Department of Natural Resources, 2026–2027 Class A Nuisance Wildlife Control Operators (PDF). Checked Oct 29, 2026.
6. Illinois Department of Public Health, Rabies (animal bites; bats in a sleeping area; animals acting abnormally). Checked Oct 29, 2026.
7. Wildlife Illinois, Raccoon. Checked Oct 29, 2026.
8. Illinois Department of Public Health, Rabies Surveillance Map, updated Oct. 21, 2026; the map's own bat totals for 2024 and 2025 are lower than the summary below, at 56 and 42. Checked Nov 2, 2026.
9. Illinois Department of Public Health, Animal Rabies Surveillance Summary for 2025 (PDF), June 17, 2026, source of the Illinois totals for 2021 to 2025. Checked Nov 2, 2026.
10. The Daily Illini, Oct. 8, 2026. Checked Nov 2, 2026.
11. NBC 5, Sept. 16, 2026. Checked Nov 2, 2026.

Written and checked by The Wildlife Line. Spot an error? Tell us through the About page.

Also: Kane County · McHenry County · Northwest Cook County · about this site