Canadian Boy Dies Of Rabies After Waking Up With Bat On His Face

An 11-year-old Canadian boy has died of rabies after waking up to find a bat covering his face while he was sleeping leading to warnings from health experts about the dangers of bat exposure.

The incident occurred during a family holiday at a cottage in Ontario in the summer of 2024 but was only recently detailed in a report published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

According to the report, the boy’s father removed the bat and released it after finding no visible bite marks or scratches on his son.

Believing there was no risk of infection, the family did not seek medical treatment.

Nineteen days later, the boy developed facial numbness, vomiting and difficulty swallowing before his condition rapidly worsened.

He was diagnosed with rabies and died after spending more than two weeks in hospital.

Health experts say bat bites can be so small that they often go unnoticed and are urging anyone who has direct contact with a bat to seek immediate medical evaluation.

They stress that prompt post-exposure treatment can prevent rabies, which is almost always fatal once symptoms develop.

The rare case has been published to raise awareness of the importance of seeking urgent medical care following any potential exposure to bats, even in the absence of visible injuries.