His family was staying at a cottage in northern Ontario in 2024 when he awoke with the bat on his nose and mouth, the Canadian Medical ᴀssociation Journal reported.

An 11-year-old boy in Ontario has died of rabies after he awoke in the middle of the night to find a bat on his face, medical experts reported.

The family was staying at a cottage in northern Ontario in 2024 when their 11-year-old son awoke in the middle of the night with a bat on his nose and mouth, according to a report published Monday in the Canadian Medical ᴀssociation Journal.

The boy, who was not identified, immediately swatted the bat away, the report said. His father caught it in a cooking pot and took it outside.

The child had no visible bite marks or scratches, and his parents were not under the impression the bat had caused any injury, according to the report.

The family did not seek immediate medical care, even though health officials recommend that anyone who has direct contact with a bat be evaluated for possible rabies exposure because even small bites often go unnoticed, the report said.

Weeks later, the boy began experiencing facial swelling and facial paralysis, according to the report.

Over several days, the boy was taken to clinics and emergency rooms as doctors searched for the cause of his worsening symptoms, the report said. He was initially treated for herpes and Bell’s palsy, a temporary weakness or paralysis of the muscles on one side of his face, and he was discharged.

Shortly afterward, he returned to the emergency room. While he was waiting to be seen, he developed a fever followed by confusion and severe hallucinations, according to the report. His condition began to rapidly worsen throughout the day, and by the night he had been intubated to protect his airway and admitted to a pediatric care unit

During the consultation, the infectious disease service “strongly suspected rabies, given the bat exposure and typical neurologic features,” according to the report.

The boy eventually lost brain stem function and died 17 days after he was admitted to the hospital, the report said.

Rabies is a viral disease that can spread to humans through the bites and scratches of an infected animal, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It primarily affects the central nervous system, which can lead to severe brain disease and often death.

Rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms begin, but it is preventable if treatment is given properly, according to the medical journal report. Human rabies cases are incredibly rare in the U.S. and Canada, with fewer than 10 deaths reported each year. This was the first case in Ontario since 1967.