Shawano County Confirms 1 Human Rabies Exposure After Bat Tests Positive

Q: If bat bites can be invisible, what critical signs of exposure might people be overlooking?

The key missed sign is not a visible wound, but any situation in which contact with a bat occurred and a bite or scratch cannot be ruled out. Health officials stress that bat bites can be so small they leave no obvious mark, so the absence of a puncture does not mean there was no exposure. What people often overlook is direct bare-skin contact with a bat, even if it seemed brief and painless. A scratch, a tiny nick, or saliva reaching broken skin, the eyes, nose, or mouth can also count as exposure. That is why simply handling a bat without gloves can be enough to warrant medical evaluation. Certain circumstances are treated as potential exposure even when no one remembers being bitten. These include waking up and finding a bat in the bedroom, discovering a bat in a room with a sleeping person, an unattended child, or someone who is intoxicated, cognitively impaired, or otherwise unable to reliably say whether contact happened. In those cases, public health guidance is to assume exposure may have occurred. People may also miss warning signs in the bat itself. A bat active in daylight, unable to fly normally, found on the ground, or acting unusually tame or disoriented may be ill, including with rabies. Because rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms begin, the practical rule is simple: if there was any possible bat contact and you cannot confidently rule out a bite, scratch, or saliva exposure, wash the area immediately and seek urgent medical advice.

3 articles · Updated · WBAY · Jun 26

A Shawano County resident was exposed to rabies within the last 24 hours after contact with a bat, and the person is now receiving treatment, the Shawano-Menominee Counties Health Department said.
The bat tested positive for rabies, marking Shawano County’s first confirmed rabid bat of 2026 and prompting officials to warn that the virus remains present in local wildlife.
Rabies usually spreads through bites, but officials said scratches or saliva entering broken skin can also expose people; anyone who touched a bat and cannot rule out a bite or scratch may need preventive care.
Health officials urged residents to wash any bite or scratch immediately, seek medical help, keep pets’ rabies shots current, and avoid releasing bats found indoors until authorities advise whether testing is needed.