Bat-Mum looks after bats in flat - 15th March 2024

Most people are frightened of bats. They think they carry diseases or that they're like vampires!

Barbara Gorecka, from Poland, was afraid too. Then 16 years ago, during a cold January, things started to change. Bats began entering her apartment via the ventilation system. A biologist friend calmed her down. Now, they're like her children.

Barbara Gorecka, bat keeper: "I devote so much time to them and they amaze me so much that I simply have to admit that I love them. I can get up in the middle of the night to give them an antibiotic, it's like loving a child."

Gorecka's taken care of 1,600 bats and currently, around 25 need extra attention. It's warm under her jumper, but she sometimes forgets they're there!

Barbara Gorecka: "The bats love to spend their time under my jumper. They purr and cuddle, just like cats. I'm so used to having bats under my shirt that I sometimes forget and leave the house, for example, or get in the car. Now I realise that I've also got a bat up my sleeve. Once I even went to church like this."

Increasing temperatures or sudden noises can interrupt their long winter sleep. If this happens, the bats wake up and are weak and hungry. Gorecka has a team of helpers and some experts who help in the bat home - her 9th floor apartment.

Gorecka hopes to inform people about bats so she visits schools to talk to children. Jadwiga Romankiewicz is a staff member at a primary school.

Jadwiga Romankiewicz: "At first some children were afraid that the bats would fly, that they might harm someone, children or other animals. It turned out that they are really friendly and very sociable."

Each animal is given a name, and also a diet and medicine plan. It's no surprise that Gorecka's now known as 'Bat-Mum'.