An encounter with a wild animal can be a terrifying experience.
While most people would advise that one should simply stay calm during an animal encounter, this is much easier said than done. Getting up close and personal with an animal is a pretty common and understandable reason for a freakout—especially when the people around you also don’t know how to react.
That’s exactly what happened to one woman, who said she was attacked by a bat while at a shopping mall. How the staff reacted left her shocked.
What Happened On This Woman’s Trip To The Mall?
In a video with over 3.3 million views, TikTok user Addison King (@addisonnking) recounts how a trip to a local shopping mall ended in disaster.
According to King, she was walking through the mall when she encountered a group of people who had seen an animal flying around the interior. Thinking it was simply a bird—and being unfazed because she “used to work at Home Depot, and they used to fly into the store all the time”—King took little notice of it.
However, the animal had another idea. Suddenly, it flew toward her—revealing that the animal was not a bird, but a bat.
King says that she began “freaking out a little bit.” But, after a few seconds, she realized the bat had left. Embarrassed, she went into a nearby store. It was at this point that a stranger told her that the bat was hanging onto her back.
How Did She Get The Bat Off?
Understandably shaken, King swatted at the bat. This caused the animal to fall off her back and land on the ground.
Soon, a woman approached King and told her, “Honey, you need to go to the hospital.” Many experts recommend getting treated for rabies after any encounter with a bat regardless of whether one was actually scratched or bitten by the animal.
She was also approached by a mall security guard, who said, “I’m gonna take your name and number. I’m not really sure of the protocol in the situation, but I’ll call you.”
“I don’t blame you. I wouldn’t expect you to know what to do right now,” King recalls saying in response.
Eventually, King decided to go to the hospital, telling the mall security that they should keep the bat to get it tested for rabies.
What Happened At The Hospital?
After a bit of argument, King was able to get treatment for rabies exposure. During this time, she learned that the mall did not test the bat for rabies but instead “threw it away.”
“They said, ‘Yeah, my supervisor wanted us to get it out of the mall as quickly as we can, so we just, like, threw it away across the street,’” King recounts. “And [I’m] thinking, ‘I’m pretty sure that’s illegal if the bat was rabid.’”
Frustratingly, King says that getting seen for the shots costs $350 per visit. Hoping she could get her medical bills at least partially covered, she reached out to the mall, who later informed her that there was little the mall would be willing to do.
“Now, you are completely vaccinated, probably around $1,000 more broke than you were before,” King says of herself. “However, you are free of rabies for the next 10 years. So if anybody has a rabid bat or a rabid animal in their house that they need taken care of, call me and I will sacrifice myself.”
What Rights Does She Have?
In general, there are few protections given to those who have random animal encounters on private property, provided that a business was not being negligent in letting the animal continue to be on the property.
However, the mall’s subsequent actions do put them in violation of state advice on rabies exposure. The state of Washington advises those who have been exposed to bats to capture the animal to test them for rabies, if possible. Additionally, the public health department should be called following bat exposure.
A court could find that the mall’s failure to do this could constitute negligence.
@addisonnking Finally telling my story 💔🦇
Commenters Are Shocked
In the comments section, users shared their terror at King’s story.
“As an ER nurse I’m so confused about the hesitation to give the rabies shot because where I work we’re literally giving them to people who simply found a bat inside their house whether it even touched them or not just in case,” wrote a commenter.
“Sue the mall! Sue me. Idk. But sue someone!” exclaimed another.
“Everyone failed you in this situation,” declared a third. “I would be so mad.”
BroBible reached out to King via TikTok direct message and comment.