Rabid bat found in Seattle park

King County health officials say a rabid bat has been found for the second time this summer at Seattle’s Madison Park. And they’re warning anyone who might have had any contact with it to get checked out.

A park visitor found the bat clinging to the bottom of a tree on the playground Saturday, Aug. 17th. Crews taped off the area and called animal control as soon as they heard about it.

The health department says anyone who touched or had contact with the bat or its saliva could be at risk to develop rabies, which is almost always fatal once symptoms begin. But rabies can be prevented if treatment is given before symptoms appear.

“This bat was from a different, more solitary species than the rabid bat found at Madison Park beach earlier this summer,” said Dr. Meagan Kay, veterinarian and medical epidemiologist for Public Health – Seattle & King County, in a statement. “This tells us that the two cases were an unusual coincidence, not suggestive of an outbreak among local bat colonies.”

Pets are also at risk for rabies and should be taken to the veterinarian immediately and revaccinated if they were exposed.

Once symptoms develop, rabies cannot be treated. Symptoms lead to death in virtually all cases, said the health department.

In Washington state, most cases of rabies in animals occur in bats. Most bats, however, do not carry rabies, and most of the bats tested for rabies in Washington are not infected, said the health department.

Symptoms of rabies include general weakness or discomfort, fever and headache. As the disease progresses, the symptoms can become discomfort or a prickling or itching sensation at the site of the bite, cerebral dysfunction, anxiety, confusion, agitation, delirium, abnormal behavior, hallucinations and insomnia.

If you touched or were bitten or scratched by a bat at Madison Park on Saturday, you’re asked to call King County Public Health immediately at (206) 296-4774.