The Cook County Department of Animal and Rabies Control has advised the Village of La Grange that a bat was found on June 2, 2022 in the vicinity of Elder Lane, La Grange. It was subsequently determined that the bat tested positive for rabies (see attached notice from Cook County).
The Village would like to provide residents with the following instructions should you encounter a bat, whether it is dead or alive:
- If you find a bat inside your home and it is dead, or in the event that it is stunned and not dead, place a bucket over it to safely contain it and then call Cook County Animal and Rabies Control at 708-974-6140.
- If the bat is alive and has not come into contact with any people or pets inside your home, open a window to let it return to the outdoors. If the bat is alive and has come into contact with a person or pet, contact Cook County Animal and Rabies Control at 708-974-6140 for further instruction.
- If the bat is alive outside, leave it alone.
- If you find a dead bat outside, use a shovel with work gloves to scoop the bat into a garbage bag. You may dispose of the bag with your regular household garbage.
The most important thing in all situations is to avoid skin to skin contact with the bat.
While no other cases of a similar nature have been reported to the Village, Cook County advises that bats testing positive for rabies is a common occurrence and that cases increase through the summer months especially with more rain as mosquitos infect them. For more information regarding Cook County's rabies control efforts, please visit their website by clicking here
For general information about rabies control, please visit the Illinois Department of Public Health webpage regarding rabies.