Two children were bitten by stray kittens while trick-or-treating in a Greece neighborhood on Halloween night, and within days both animals were dead, leaving their families waiting five days to learn whether the kids needed treatment for a disease that is almost always fatal once symptoms appear in humans. The children were bitten after bending down to pet the kittens, and by the next day their parents found the animals lethargic, not eating, and sickly.
Within hours, one of the kittens started foaming at the mouth, according to a report from WHEC. That kitten died Monday morning, and the second kitten died later the same day with similar symptoms, the parents told the station. Chris Franklin, the father of a 10-year-old who was bitten, said hospital staff declined to give his child the rabies vaccine, telling the family that the cat might be sick for reasons other than rabies.
A Five-Day Wait for Results
Franklin said his family endured five days without answers, and that a reassurance the results would come soon was not enough given what was at stake. Rabies treatment is needed immediately after a possible exposure to prevent the disease in humans, according to public health campaigns, which also describe rabies as almost always fatal once it takes hold. Franklin said the uncertainty led to sleepless nights for his family, and that he remained frustrated by how long the process dragged on.
According to WHEC, test results were not sent until late Thursday afternoon, after the station began making calls about the case. The results showed no evidence of rabies, which the station reported brought relief to the families involved. Franklin argued the county's approach could encourage people to be dishonest about exposures, and said his family deserved more help during the wait.
Why the County Waited on Vaccine Approval
In most cases involving domestic animals, the state laboratory must confirm rabies before Monroe County approves and pays for treatment, even when a symptomatic animal is ultimately euthanized, per the WHEC report. State guidance prefers waiting to start treatment while steps are underway to determine an animal's rabies status, citing concerns about vaccine side effects along with resource and cost issues, the station reported. Monroe County officials weigh those wait times against treatment decisions that hinge on test results, according to the same report.
The calculus changes for wild animals. Monroe County covers the cost of rabies treatment when a wild animal bites someone and cannot be found, per WHEC's reporting. Animal bites must be reported to the county, and medical personnel must call MCDPH before post-exposure treatment, according to the Monroe County Department of Public Health.
Rare, But Not Unheard Of, In Monroe County
Rabies-positive animals were uncommon among Monroe County samples tested in 2025. Monroe County sent 174 samples for rabies testing in 2025, and only 14 came back positive, according to the WHEC report. Those 14 positive samples included two cats, seven bats, one skunk, three raccoons and one fox.
Statewide, counties outside New York City are required to authorize treatment for people exposed to rabies within their borders, according to the New York State Department of Health. With that prior authorization, a person is likely not to have to pay for treatment; without it, the person may be left responsible for the expense. For the Franklin family, the ordeal ended with the news they had been hoping for, even as the five-day wait left them questioning how the county handles the next case.
