Will County Sets Record for Rabid Bat Cases

Will County set a record this weekend, with the 14th case of wildlife rabies in 2015—one more than the county saw in 2014.

All of this year’s cases have involved bats, as have each of the county’s 99 confirmed cases of wildlife rabies since 2002, Will County Health Department spokesman Vic Reato said in a release Tuesday.

A bat was seen flying in a bedroom in a home on the 12000 block of west Oak Court in Homer Glen at approximately 5 a.m. Sunday, August 30. It was captured and sent for testing. Will County received confirmation that the bat was rabid late Monday.

It marks the eighth rabies confirmation of the year from Homer Glen. Because a bat was found flying inside the home, post-exposure rabies treatment was recommended for two people living there. The Health Department has recommended post-exposure rabies treatments for at least nine Homer Glen residents since early July.

“We recommend post-exposure rabies treatment if there’s ever a bat found inside the home. Their teeth are so small, like little needles, and they can actually scratch or bite you and you may not know it because the mark would be so small you may never see it,” Reato told Chicago Tribune.

Rabies is a potentially fatal viral disease transmitted to humans through the bite or scratch of an infected warm-blooded animal. An estimated 2 percent of bats carry rabies, Reato said, and “all you need is one bat in the house to be exposed.”

If untreated, rabies attacks the central nervous system, usually resulting in heart or respiratory failure, and death within a week to 14 days.

“My only logical explanation for the large number of bats found in Homer Glen this year is that the bats are attracted to wooded areas containing sources of food and water,” said Will County Animal Control Administrator Lee Schild D.V.M. “We still have a few weeks of peak bat activity to negotiate, so it is possible that we could have more of these incidents to come. People need to remain vigilant for bats flying near the roof or eaves of their home and should consider consulting a wildlife exclusion expert to make sure the animals are not gaining access to the inside of the home.”

Will is one of at least 16 Illinois counties to report wildlife rabies during 2015. More than 60 percent of the 2015 confirmed cases have come from Will, Cook, or DuPage County.

Will County Animal Control is available 24 hours daily to deal with bats, or any other warm-blooded animal capable of rabies transmission. Call Animal Control anytime at 815-462-5633.