Rabies From Bat Scratch Kills 6-Year-Old Florida Boy

Ryker Roque, a 6-year-old Florida boy, died Sunday at an Orlando hospital after contracting rabies from a sick bat about a week prior to being admitted to the hospital.

The young boy became infected when he was scratched by the animal, after his father, Henry Roque, found the bat and told Ryker not to touch it, though the child didn’t listen. Henry washed his son’s cut out, but did not take him to the hospital because he seemed fine and was crying when he was told he’d need to receive shots, according to Patch.

It wasn’t until a week after the scratch when Ryker’s fingers and legs became numb and his head started to ache that his parents took him to a hospital for treatment. After receiving tests, the Roque family was told that Ryker did, in fact, have rabies.

When a vaccine is administered immediately, before any symptoms present themselves, rabies is likely to be stopped, but if the preventive medicine is given after symptoms arrive, it doesn’t do much good. Ryker’s family created a GoFundMe page to help raise money for his medical bills and for experimental treatment, but no treatment was able to help him.

After staying at the hospital for a few days, Ryker, who graduated Christian Academy Preschool in 2016, died from the rabies disease on Sunday. The school shared a statement on Facebook on Monday to reveal the news to parents and to raise awareness of a fundraiser they were having in his honor.

“Heavens gates opened for our little angel, Ryker Roque,” the statement began. “Ryker was a happy and quiet little boy adored by teachers and classmates.”

The school explained how Ryker was scratched by the bat and eventually brought to the hospital where “experimental treatment was tried,” though “it is rare for survival from rabies.”

An ice cream fundraiser will be held on Jan. 19 during snack time at the school, where kids can donate $1 and receive ice cream in return, though the students will not be told the details of the fundraiser “because they are too young to understand.”

Aside from the event, the school has also decided to begin giving safety lessons to its students “on approaching stray and wild animals.”