Yikes. Just 10 minutes down the road from me.
I don’t think it’s as bad as tetanus, with the muscle spams that can break bones.
Prayers for these people, having to live with this kind of regret.
Now I am glad I got rabies shots last year and 25 years ago.
I know hundreds of thousands of Americans, maybe a million plus, must have a bat in the room with them each year. A small minority gets shots, maybe one gets rabies.
I did read that 1 in 100 bats has rabies, but 1 in 10 bats captured in a house and sent for testing has rabies.
If you want to get a bat tested, it is very difficult. Coordinating the local board of health, animal control, and the state testing lab.
Tip: see if you can get an infectious disease doctor to give precautionary rabies shots or shots after initial ER visit. You may save a bucket of money, but no one seems to tell.you this.
I found out a close relative had contact with a bat because she posted it on social media. I insisted she go to the ER and get a rabies shot.
Turns out the baby bat made little scratches which also had to be treated with a separate injection to prevent possible permanent nerve damage.
NEVER take chances with rabies. The survival rate after symptoms develop is almost zero. I think there is only one known survivor.
The only exception in cases like this is if you can have the animal tested. For bats, they must be destroyed because it requires disecting the brain. I’m not sure about other animals.
Fortunately there is effective treatment available. Living in Ohio we were always alert that bats carry rabies, were taught not to mess with them.
Horriffic. I hope they put the child in an induced coma instead of letting it flop around in agony.