A bat found inside a home in the 400 block of Grove Street in Glencoe on Friday, July 3, has tested positive for rabies, Cook County confirmed in a letter on Tuesday, July 7. Any human or pet exposed to the bat should seek a medical consultation immediately, the county said.
The Village of Glencoe issued a public alert about the discovery. Grove Street runs along Glencoe's west side, bordering the dense woodlands of the Skokie Lagoons and the Skokie Country Club. This is the second rabid bat confirmed on that street in three years. A prior case was found in the 800 block of Grove Street in 2023.
What to do if you encounter a bat
After the bat was found July 3, it was submitted to the Illinois State Public Health Laboratory for testing. The positive result came back four days later.
The Illinois Department of Public Health warns that a bat's teeth are small enough that a bite may go undetected. Any direct contact with a bat should be treated as a potential rabies exposure. Bats active during the day, found on the ground, or unable to fly are more likely to be rabid, according to IDPH.
If exposed, preventive treatment known as post-exposure prophylaxis is necessary, according to IDPH. However, if the bat can be safely captured and tests negative, no preventive medication is required.
Health officials advise extra caution for residents who walk pets or spend time outdoors after dark in wooded corridors where bats are active.
If a bat or skunk is found injured, unresponsive, or dead on your property or in a public area, contact Cook County Animal and Rabies Control at 708-974-6140.
Statewide numbers
Bats are the most common rabies-carrying animal in Illinois. According to IDPH surveillance data, 20 rabid bats have been found statewide in 2026, including one in suburban Cook County and two in Lake County. It is unclear whether the one suburban Cook County case in IDPH's data refers to this Glencoe bat or a separate earlier case. By comparison, 49 rabid bats were confirmed across Illinois in all of 2025.
The last reported human rabies case in Illinois was in 2021.
The Village of Glencoe's original public communication about the bat was not posted on a publicly accessible webpage at press time. Residents can contact the village at villageofglencoe.org for the full alert.
