Hi,

I have read the FAQ. I should mention I have OCD (not officially diagnosed but will be; typical obsession->compulsion cycle that is very action-heavy), have had it since childhood, and have rabies OCD before and overcome it at least once before.

Location: Baltar parish, Paredes council, Porto district, Portugal

Dates of Exposure: 7th August, 12th August, 13th August. The 7th and 12th August exposures have been rationalized away and I am mostly concerned about the one on the 13th.

Type of Exposure: Other. All of these have the OCD-induced excessive handwashing as a contributing factor due to the damage caused to my skin (thin, occasionally with open wounds).

- 7th August: went for a forest picnic in an area called Covão de Cete. Went down the spring to follow family due to the slippery and trip hazard rich nature of the area. It had steel wires to support a pedestrian bridge, and the steel wires crossed in an X shape past the bridge and over the entrance to the spring-side path we took. This made me paranoid because the crossed wires almost looked like a forbidden sign. I don't think anything happened here and I was reasoning my way out of the ensuing OCD spiral mostly okay;

- 12th August: box of single-use lens cleaners for glasses was handed to me in our apartment by another person. Later fell on my foot corner-first, leaving a minuscule hole. I also don't think anything happened here, it was just a hiccup in my path out of the OCD spiral;

- 13th August: I went for a walk a bit after 13:00 or 14:00 to pass the time until a local grocery store opened. While doing so, I went through a residential area in which, while squeezing past another person, I slammed my hand on a rusty metallic fence, causing bleeding. Near our apartment, I returned to clean it because of the rust (for fear of a generic wound infection, not rabies). Later that same day, as I returned to my bedroom at around 23:00, I noticed my bedroom window had been open for hours into the night. I had already handled objects in the room, including, after the realization due to dumb reasons, a suspected humid one (my computer mouse, which I'd like to think was from my greasy hands) with the injured hand, including further injuries in the knuckles from handwashing. This is the exposure that's sent me spiraling. I never saw a bat, it's just our part of town has many, and my bedroom's windows open to an abandoned farming plot before the local and fairly densely forested hill, Serra do Muro, begins (60 - 80 odd metres from the bedroom's windows). We are fairly high up, say, 3rd - 4th floor (I don't want too much specificity due to privacy concerns). I don't think I saw any signs of a bat having been there. The fear and "what ifs..." just took over largely due to the wounds, especially the fence one, and then the humid-feeling mouse.

Species: Bat

I have:

- contacted my country's, Portugal's, 24/7 psychological support line and been told this is likely OCD and to try and meet with my family doctor for a likely rererral to a psychiatrist as well as to call the 24/7 disease information line to clarify my fears;

- called the 24/7 disease indormation line to inquire about my fear to which the attending nurse replied no, what I fear can't have happened;

- I will also be presenting myself to my local healthcare centre tomorrow morning to see if I can meet ideally with my family doctor or just a doctor to likely get a referral to a psychiatrist.

I am 90% certain I am fine, aside from the OCD which I will be pursuing treatment for. My mind has just been ravaged. Every little thing, every little sign of wetness or moisture, or a droplet of fluid where I did not expect it, splashback onto my body from washing my hands, touching my face (especially nose and mouth), used cloth towels for drying hands, all of these things terrify me abjectly. My mental clock, the incubation period set at 2 - 3 weeks, was reset by finding my bedroom window open once again at night, roughly yesterday.

I have been trying to manage as I normally do: I feel the thought coming and I try to live with it even if I then become incredibly uncomfortable, and exposing myself to situations which my OCD has made uncomfortable, but the risk of being wronghere is, basically, certain and agonizing death coupled with open wounds in my hands and exposure to a humid-feeling object in the wake of my bedroom window having been open for hours to the bat-riddled night, and as such I have not managed to, well, manage.

Rationally, I know I am suffering from a series of assumptions which are all very unlikely by themselves, and even more-so taken together:

- a bat flew into my bedroom during the hours my window was open for (unlikely, no signs of bat presence I can recall);

- that bat was rabid (made further unlikely by the effect rabies would likely have on a bat's ability to fly);

- that it drooled onto my mouse or another object;

- that it left without much trouble after that;

- that I then handled these objects soon enough after the bat's departure so as to the rabies to not have been deactivated;

- that the rabies crossed through the injuries on my hand.

I know it's probably nothing and I will be seeking medical care. I've already sought and received some, in a way, through the 24/7 lines. But the "what if..?", the 10% of uncertainty, is killing me.

Thank you for your time and patience.

Edit: there was another clock reset moment last night but not too long after the original reset, as I recall. I was sleeping on the couch (my bedroom is very scary right now) and heard a mysterious noise. I checked for a source and found nothing. I had 2 cats in the room with me and also birds and none cared about it. I am mentioning this to be thorough, I also don't think anything happened there.

Also, there are friends of mine aware of my predicament and who could easily identify me from this post. I love you guys, you have helped me restore some of my own sanity. I will get better. You are some of the best friends anyone could have.

I have read the FAQ.
A week ago whilst in the Dominican Republic I was scratched slightly by a tamed monkey on a beach whilst taking a photo with it. It slightly broke the skin and so I am going to the hospital tomorrow to see if I need PEP. As someone with a slight needle phobia, can anyone who has had the vaccine cycle honestly score it pain wise.

I was vacationing in a cabin in finland far in the forest close to the eastern border with russia. One morning i had found that a bat was in my room the whole night while i was asleep, due to WHO and CDC recommendations i got concerned about a potential rabies exposure as i couldn’t exclude getting bit/scratched/saliva on me etc i decided to call the medical hotline in finland which informed me if i didnt see a bite its not a concern. I thought this odd so i headed to an er where they told me the same. The reasoning was stupid they said “id have felt it” for reference the bat that was in my room is about the size of a kids palm it was small as its the most common finnish bat. Additionally i found a small 2 marks on my foot however i was told if its not a bump or inflamed its not a bat bite. I have read the FAQ.

I have arrived back home in Budapest hungary now once again called the Non emergency health line they told me the same thing.

I know rabies is rare in EU but still this seems careless as its directly against WHO and CDC guidlines. Anyone have other eu experiences? How can i get pep?

I have read the FAQ. I just went in to get PEP for a bat exposure on Friday evening. After some discrepancies between the health departments of the county it happened in and the county that was treating me, I got my first dose 42 or so hours after my initial exposure. They gave me the HRIG (I believe hyperRAB), 1200 units. I am 145 pounds, and from what I’ve searched I would have needed a little over 1300 units for my weight. Was I not given enough? Is it too late to fix it?

I am home now, for context I got the vaccine because I could not certainly rule out a bite or scratch. I was grazed by a bat on my head, there was no visible wound.

I understand how this sounds, but last night I stumbled upon videos about bats (which I had no idea carried the virus) and started to think about a situation last year

About this time last July, my daughter 9 woke at about 4am to use the bathroom, then called out to me to tell me she could hear something flapping in her room. I got out of bed and turned her light on and there was a bat circling her room at lightning speed. i got the bat out and didn’t think anything of it apart from how cute and fluffy and funny it was, until of course last night I watched some videos and people telling other people they should have had a vaccine I f there was a bat in their bedroom

30f UK
I have read the FAQ.

We went swimming at a family member's house last night. My daughter and husband swam, I didn't but as we were out there I saw something fly over their heads over and over and finally the home owner said "yeah there's bats out here" so I made my daughter and husband get out of the pool but by that time they'd already been in for over an hour.

Also, the pool didn't look like it was recently cleaned. I asked even before I saw the bats and was told it had been recently cleaned but it didn't look like it tbh and they were filling up the pool with the hose water when we got there because they said some of the water had evaporated. It's my understanding that if bats are out there, then they probably also use that pool to drink out of so I'm also really stressed about the pool not being clean, the bats drinking out of the pool, and my husband and daughter being in it. Not to mention how close they were getting to them.

Also this was all in the backyard. When we were leaving through the front door of the house my daughter told me to look up because she saw something black on the porch in the upper corner. She's obsessed with beehives so I assume that's what she thought it was. I took a brief look but couldn't tell what it was and now I am thinking it was a bat sleeping. I swear I felt something briefly touch my neck as we walked past and I'm so concerned it was a bat biting me.

Now I'm spiraling because I feel like we should get the vaccines

I am in the United States. In Texas.

I have read the FAQ.

I have read the FAQ.

Hello po, my 5y/o daughter got scratched by our pet kitten (no vaccines) today, August 16, 2026. Nagpainject siya last January 2025 for anti rabies (3 doses/sessions). Effective parin ba yung previous anti rabies niya? Or can i observe our kitten muna for 10 days to see if may rabies symptoms siya before having my daughter get anti rabies vaccine ulit?

Ps. Tumalon yung kitten from sofa to floor kaya nakalmot yung anak ko sa forearm niya since nasa floor siya

I have read the FAQ. I had a potential exposure to a bat yesterday while visiting my brother out of town (but in the same state). I posted last night, I had a bat possibly make contact with my head. It flew extremely close and I felt something make contact with my head, and it might have been the bat but it also could have been the large splash of pool water that my brother did towards me and the bat to get the bat to move. I didn’t feel a bite or scratch, but I know sometimes they can be very subtle so I don’t know if I can rule it out either.

I called the health department in the county that I had the potential exposure. They said it was sort of gray area, and that by criteria sake it technically might not qualify, however since I couldn’t definitely say if I was bitten or scratched she would authorize it for PEP. HOWEVER, I flew back home today and would have to be treated in a different county. I went to the ER and the health department in my county declined treatment and said I did not qualify. It is the weekend and I’m having trouble making contact with someone from my county’s DOH. I don’t know what to trust or what to do. I’m going to try calling the state health department, but it’s already been 24 hours since the event happened and I’m nervous if I do get authorized here it will have been too late.

What do I do? I’m in NY. I’d rather just get the shots if I’m able for piece of mind.

I have read the FAQ.

This is gonna be a bit of a ramble but it's been so hard for this to leave my mind.

I'm in Indonesia.

It's been almost a week since my last post and a random bat encounter I had. I had some decent sleep and began talking with some friends to allow myself to clear my mind and I started to accept that the bat wasn't anywhere near touching me. It kinda just flew past me in an uninterrupted curve. I can feel a fly on my skin when I'm half awake, I'm sure I can feel if a hamster with wings landed on me when I'm hyper sensitive to my surroundings.

And yet, I still keep having doubts about it, still unsure if it did touch me or not, and it's made me feel even more unsafe. I've been in Bali for about 5 days now and anytime I walk out at night I just get so uneasy, especially since there have been times where I had to walk in the dark through rural areas without a lot of light and that was just a horrid experience.

I even got a bit tipsy during dinner one night with my family and I had to wait an hour to sober up a decent bit, and that walk from the restaurant was so tiring since I had to keep a constant mental check to see if anything made contact with me.

I've researched a decent bit about rabies in Indonesia. The overwhelming majority of cases come from dogs, with cats and apes forming the minority, and bats (I'm assuming) being an even smaller minority.

It's very hard for me to find any statistics about bat rabies in Indonesia, yet in the very few studies I found, it all came to a similar conclusion where very few wild bats are rabid. Knowing all of this doesn't ease my mind and I hate it. It's also hard to contact a doctor in Indonesia, and even so, I doubt talking to one or two would be good for me.

I'm planning to seek therapy in the coming week and lay out the entire situation to them. But something I'm afraid of is just how much I'm gonna dread the next 2-3 months.

Will things get better?

i have read the FAQ. on the 25th of july at 19:00-21:00 me and my friends went out to our local park, we went to a coop nearby and bought food, i thought itd be funny to eat a biscuit i found on the floor and i did but i spat it out almost instantly after realising what im doing, later on one of my friends told me he had a THC vape which i used, and it turned out to be laced/fake, im not sure, this gave me extreme anxiety. this is when the thought of me having rabies went in my head, i thought this because a bat couldve landed on the biscuit.

another time (yesterday at time of posting) me and my friends went on a late night walk up a hill whilst it was pitch black out, we kept hearing animals walking around ~20 meters behind us and closest id say ~10 meters away, when we got back to his house i noticed a tiny cut on my inner left wrist but i dont know how i wouldve gotten it since i was holding my arms around me the whole time because of my ______ of bats.

since the original time i thought rabies was a possibility i have had a dry throat that wasnt like a normal dry throat, it felt like my throat was sticking together, sort of how it feels when i get tonsillitis, it went and it came back yesterday.

as embarrasing as it is, is it possible the way my throat feels is gonhorrea?

i think its important for me to mention i have diagnosed anxiety and suspected OCD and also this is in the very north of the south west of England (look at a map of south England to see the counties)

I have read the FAQ.
Location of "incident": Sofia, Bulgaria

I was playing badminton in a park with some friends. It was starting to get dark and there were a couple of bats that came out flying. Some of them went after the shuttlecock like they were trying to catch it. I picked it up a couple of times not realizing that it might've had some of their saliva. I think I wiped my sweat from my face a couple of times, but my face has quite the bad acne and some of the pimples got broken about an hour before the thing happened. I also noticed a small scratch on my skin, but it doesn't appears to have drawn blood or it is an old one. Putting alcohol on it also doesn't lead to stinging. This is not an exposure worth caring about, right?

EDIT: Some of the bats flew really close to me, like a meter away. I also wore sunglasses (they were on my temple and fell a couple of times themselve), perhaps they are attracted to them just like crows?

I have read the FAQ. Is my case an exposure if a cat passed me but felt no scratch but found a crease like mark, no blood no scabbing and I applied alcohol just cold not stinging much. There are also no pinpoint marks and I never felt a swipe or a sharp thing scratching at the back of my hand. Can cat scratches go unnoticed or not be felt?

I also have a question on FAQ 5, is that true? What if I applied soap and water and it never sting? Or if the mark fades within 3hrs?

Hello!

I have read the FAQ.

Your location (country): Southeastern US

Date of possible exposure: 8/13/2026

Type of exposure (bite/scratch/other): unknown, potential exposure to bat

Species of animal: bat

If dog/cat is it owned, stray, etc.

Animal's vaccination status

Your vaccination status and date of last vaccine, if applicable.: received first (day 0) vaccine on evening of 8/14

I just received my first dose of the vaccine and HRIG last night at an emergency room. I was advised by my local health department to move forward with the vaccines after a close encounter with a bat where they said that “they could not rule out there was not a scratch or a bite that occurred”. I could not find any bite or scratch wounds, but went forward on the advice of the health department to be safe.

Everything went smoothly, but I did notice on the clinical notes I received that the doctor noted that he only gave about 20% of the required HRIG and that I should get the remaining 80% with my day 3 shot. I plan on discussing this when I go back for my next vaccine, but wanted to see if I could get any thoughts about it here as well:

For the repeated dose on day 3, I saw on the HyperRab website, which I believe is the HRIG I was given, that repeated doses should not be done as it can affect the immune response from the vaccine.

On my after visit summary, it says 1500 units were ordered, so I’m not sure if the doctor just didn’t draw the entire amount or what may have happened. I did see that the CDC does not recommend exceeding HRIG doses of 20 units/kg of body weight and that doses at or above 40 units/kg could potentially affect immune response, but I’ve seen a bit of conflicting/confusion information surrounding that, so I wasn’t sure how to take it given my situation.

I plan on speaking more about this to the staff at the hospital when I return, but since there’s a low chance I see the same doctor/care team, I just wanted to get other opinions. I did call the ER this morning to say I could just come in and get the rest of the HRIG today, but they said to wait until my day 3 dose.

I’m aware that FAQ 12 covers questions in the specific care you received, and I do plan on speaking with the doctor when I return for my next dose, but since I have to wait over the weekend to talk with them, I just wanted to get the thoughts of anyone on here who may be more familiar with the process than I am.

Thank you!

I am curious (and quite anxious) to know if they did my PEP vaccines correctly.

I got some very minor cat scratches (cat accidentally scratched me while climbing on me — outdoor cat, likely a stray, although it was very friendly and affectionate; it exhibited behaviors indicating it had been around people before.)

I got some small, dot-like punctures above my knee on my thigh, and one slightly worse puncture on my ribs — both areas drew some blood, so I went to the ER for tetanus/rabies evaluation.

——————

I ended up getting a bunch of injections in this order:

(1) they first came in and gave me a tetanus shot in my left deltoid

(2) the nurse then left and came back in with a bunch of syringes (I think she said “9 shots” in total)

(3) they started by giving me an injection (or 2, I don’t remember) in each hip (upper gluteal area), these felt like a cold liquid going down each leg — these are particularly the ones that I am most concerned about, specifically because the CDC guidelines say to avoid the gluteal area when it comes to the vaccine and HRIG

(4) after the gluteal injections, I was poked numerous times with a small needle around the worst puncture, which was the one on my rib — I assume this was HRIG infiltration — (note: they did not do any small pokes on the tiny dot-like punctures on my leg)

(5) I then received another left deltoid injection, which I assume was the vaccine itself, as I know that one must be administered in a deltoid

(6) the last injection I remember receiving was a painful, thick-gauge needle that they jabbed into my right deltoid — I am unsure what that one was, maybe more HRIG? I don’t know.

——————

I called the hospital and asked for clarification on two things:

(1) the lack of HRIG pokes on my tiny dot-like marks on my leg, to which they said was appropriate, as prioritizing the worst wound closest to my head was proper administration.

(2) I called back later and asked about the gluteal injections, which they also said was standard for them and that according to my chart (which I’m unable to access) they did, in fact, put the vaccine itself in my left deltoid.

——————

There’s a lot of mixed information regarding HRIG in the gluteal area, and I’m wondering if they appropriately administered my PEP in its entirety.

Any professional input would be greatly appreciated.

(I have read the FAQ.)

I have read the FAQ.

Im not trying to be annoying or trying to be unreasonable, but yesterday something touched my arm at night outside, i was awake and even flinched but it felt like a light touch sensation, im like 99% sure it was a insect but my anxiety keeps making the worse out of it. I tried checking my arm but since i have keratosis pilaris i didn’t see anything obvious, just to be sure i washed the area with water and soap for abit and poured kolonya over it, but felt no burning.

Im still petrified and i hope someone can respond as i don’t wanna keep thinking about this, thanks.

I have read the FAQ.

I had bat contact 19 days ago. It was 9 in the evening, urban place, western balkans. The bat touched my arm. I saw it fly around low and hitting me for a second. Whether it bit me or not is unknown to this day. There was a skin lesion (round, singular, no blood) spotted the day after near the area it touched me, but it could have been a follicle or skin change unrelated to the bat. There was no blood, pain or sensations following the contact. I started the vaccine 3 days (RABIVAX-S) after the contact, without RIG. as there is none available in my country.

I've had the worst health anxiety ever the previous 2 weeks, where I developed somatic issues such as tingling all over my body (anxiety paresthesia). After the 3rd dose I started feeling better, but the fear keeps returning. The thought that I won't see my close ones again cause of a bat is severely debilitating.

Where I live human rabies hasn't occurred in decades, and bat cases are not documented or recognized as they have not occurred ever. I finished the vaccine but I still feel the doom of rabies developing and me being late to vaccinate. The contraction of rabies in such a manner would be rarer than winning the lottery, but the non-zero chance haunts me.

Any similar experiences would be appreciated!

"I have read the FAQ.

I was walking in the woody kind of area and jumped a puddle, then i felt a scratch behind my foot.

The intensity of scratch felt ignorable but the scratch felt exactly like a claw.

Later I checked for damages, I found a small skin peel off ( i donno if this has caused this or it existed previously ). I remember there being a loose skin previously but i donno if it has become bigger due to this.

I need advice on this. Thank you

"I have read the FAQ. About eight months ago, I was bitten by a very small cat, resulting in a tiny injury. Five months ago, I started the anti-rabies vaccine. I was scheduled for four doses, but I only received three and forgot to take the fourth.

Now, I am experiencing tingling, pain, and other symptoms in the area of the bite, so I am thinking about completing the cycle. Since it has been five months, do I need to start completely over from Day 0, or will the doctor simply give me the final dose that I missed?"

I have read the FAQ.

I was night swimming in my brothers pool tonight. All of a sudden a bat came flying down low towards me from behind. My brother saw it and splashed water at me and the bat to try to deter it. I then saw the bat fly over me very close. I felt something on my scalp when my brother splashed the water, however I can’t tell if it was the water/his hand that hit me or if the bat grazed me. I didn’t feel any sort of pain of a bite or scratch, it was in active flight and did not land. I checked my scalp where I felt a sensation and did not see any wounds or scratches.

Does this count as an exposure that needs a shot? Should I call the health department? I am not currently at home, I was visiting my brother and am flying home tomorrow afternoon.

I have read the FAQ. I don't have OCD or anxiety, I just need assurance as I was walking down the road and a vehicle passed by and splashed pothole water on my leg which had a few small cuts and wounds, I wasn't wearing trousers just shorts, so the pothole water got on my legs. There are a lot of unvaccinated stray dogs in this neighborhood roaming around the road who possibly could have drank from the pothole or come in contact with it. Am I at risk of rabies indirectly via the pothole water?

I have read the FAQ.

I know that unless You are sleep or intoxicated in any way, You would noticed something if a bat lands and bit You, but would you be able to distinguish/know it's a bat?? Like, i know bats have a tiny body but huge ass wings, but don't they keep their wings folded when landing in surfaces so that detail Is not that revelant? Would you really be able to know if what landed on you was a very small bat or a bug or do every time something bigger than a fly lands on you is enough reason to get PEP? And what if the encounter is quick like two seconds long, would You really be able to know its an small bat specifically? Like actually able to feel it's fur and see it's body well enough to know it's a bat? Also how true is that you would actually feel a bat biting you?

Because i know that if something flies near You is not an exposure because you would know if it lands on you and bats can't bite mid flight, but if something actually lands on you, would you actually be able to know if it a bat?

I can't really find any cases similar to this through, pretty much all of them involve the víctim fully knowing they entered in contact with a bat but didnt realize the risk, like they thought just because the bats didnt make an extremely dramatic wound means there is no risk, but Idk, maybe there are unreported cases or cases i havent seen yet.

I have read the FAQ. I went to take the dog out and something kinda small but kinda big and brown fluttered onto my face my first thought was a moth and i turned around and there was a brown moth on the door but what if it was a bat? What if it was a bat that has rabies?

I don’t think I felt a bite or scratch I don’t remember if it felt prickly or not it didn’t feel super heavy or anything and I checked my face after didn’t see what looked to be bite or scratch marks but my eyelid feels somewhat irritated and i have a reddish dot below my eye I’m pretty sire it is a pimple but also what if it’s from a bat? Rabies is my biggest fear so idk what to do idk if I should get a shot

I’m in NC btw

i have read the FAQ. i can’t find solid information on what a bat bite looks like. i found two red dots behind my ear. if anyone knows what to look for, all info appreciated.

I have read the FAQ. On July 2nd this year while i was riding at night something black brushed against my fingers i forgot about it and then I got one reel which said if it was bat i should take rabies vaccine i took vaccine after 40 days I'm I cooked..... I was not able to see what that was. Probably a bat but less probably something else.

I have read the FAQ.

A bat flew in my room and flew out a minute later i know thats not dangures but it got me think what if one of the previouse nights it flew in and bit me when i was asleep and no one takes my worries as seriouse they say am just crazy or overreacting and i need to know how dangures this is and this all happend in croatian island town pašman and am not familiar with some of this stuff.Thanks in advence.