Rabid Bat Found on North Side

By Tim State in News on Jan 11, 2009 5:07PM

Heads-up, people. The Chicago Health Department is encouraging everyone to avoid contacts with bats (like we needed that reminder) after a bat discovered in an apartment last Wednesday tested positive for rabies.

The bat was initially discovered about 2 a.m. by a house cat that, in turn, woke up a man and woman in the home. They saw the bat lying on the floor and trapped it with a bucket. They then alerted city authorities, and staff from Chicago Animal Care and Control came to the home to remove the bat safely, according to a release from CDPH.

Thank goodness for hero house cats. As a precaution the man and woman are being treated for rabies, a series of five vaccinations over 28 days.

“Rabies should never, under any circumstances, be taken lightly,” CDPH Commissioner Terry Mason said. “This is a deadly viral disease that attacks the nervous system. There is no effective treatment for rabies once symptoms have started. At that point, it is fatal.” [S-T]