Wisconsin girl recovering after rabid bat bite outside home
The 6-year-old was bitten in Tigerton and began rabies treatment after the bat tested positive, her family and health officials said.
By Tom Brennan · Health & Medicine Correspondent
2 min read
A 6-year-old Wisconsin girl is recovering after a rabid bat bit her while she was playing outside her family’s home, according to her mother and local health officials. The case prompted rabies treatment after the animal was captured, killed and later tested positive.
Cecilia “Cece” Kale was playing near a tree at the family’s home in Tigerton, about 60 miles west of Green Bay, when the bat bit her left thigh last week, her mother, Elizabeth Kale, told NBC News. Kale said Cece’s brothers, 11-year-old Nicklas and 16-year-old Camden, rushed to help remove the bat.
According to Kale, Camden used a pole to knock the bat away from his sister, and Nicklas then killed it with a homemade sword he had made that day. Kale told NBC News the blade was inspired by the film “Braveheart,” a family favorite.
The bat was tested and came back positive for rabies, Kale said. She told NBC News that the family agreed to have Cece receive post-exposure rabies shots within 48 hours of the bite, despite the family’s opposition to mandated immunizations.
Kale said the family would have chosen treatment even if the bat had not been tested, and she credited doctors and county health workers with explaining the process. Rabies is nearly always fatal without treatment, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but the CDC says post-exposure care can prevent illness when given properly after a possible exposure.
Nick Mau, health officer for the Shawano-Menominee County Health Department, confirmed the incident to NBC News. He said his office handles roughly one human exposure involving a rabid bat each year.
Mau told NBC News the case drew attention because the person bitten was a child and the bat tested positive. He said county health staff often work with patients who have concerns about vaccines or other medical treatments.
In such cases, Mau said, the department’s role is to explain the risk and share recommendations from medical professionals, the state health department and the CDC. Rabies post-exposure prophylaxis generally involves a series of shots, according to CDC guidance cited by NBC News.
Kale told NBC News that Cece has continued to enjoy being outside after the bite, despite the pain of treatment. She said the family does not plan to stop its eight children from playing outdoors because of the local bat population.
According to Kale, the family chose its rural home to give the children land and an outdoor-focused upbringing. She told NBC News the children continue to do well there.
This story draws on original reporting from NBC News.