6-Year-Old Bit By Rabid Bat In WI: Report

TIGERTON, WI — A 6-year-old girl from Shawano County was bitten last week by a rabid bat, according to WBAY.

The animal wrapped its wings around Cece Kale’s leg on June 23 in a tree outside her home in Tigerton, the outlet reported, adding the bat was eventually killed by one of her brothers.

The girl began a series of rabies shots on Thursday, according to WBAY.

In a news release announcing that the bat had tested positive for rabies, the Shawano-Menominee Counties Health Department noted that the virus is nearly always fatal once symptoms appear. The animal was the county’s first confirmed rabid bat of 2026.

Anyone bitten or scratched by a bat should clean the wound with soap and water, contact a physician or go to the emergency room, and, if possible, safely capture the animal and hold it until local health officials can be consulted, the news release said.