2 days ago
Gen Zer Scratched by Street Cat in Thailand—then Comes Chilling Realization
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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A British teenager's vacation took a frightening turn after a seemingly minor cat scratch led to an urgent hospital visit and a series of rabies vaccinations across two countries.
Izzy Sampson, 19, from England, shared her ordeal in a TikTok video posted under her account @ which has had over 632,000 views since it was first posted on May 4.
The clip shows her tearfully recounting how a stray cat scratched her foot on Thailand's Phi Phi Islands, prompting a medical emergency. "Guys, don't get scratched by a cat," Sampson warns in the video. "I didn't know the rabies situation was gonna go this downhill."
The footage includes a shot of her visibly swollen foot placed on a clinic table. "They put a needle in it three times, really hurts," she says, later clarifying that it wasn't the needle that scared her but more the pain in the toe that the needle was put in. "Just a bit of a shock," she said.
In an interview with Newsweek, Sampson explained that the scratch occurred when a cat ran across the road and over her foot. "It possibly got startled and happened to run over my foot cutting my toes when I was stood still having a chat with my friends," she told Newsweek. The wound, which broke the skin and caused bleeding, prompted her to seek immediate medical attention the following day.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains: "Rabies is a fatal but preventable viral disease. It can be spread to people and pets through the bites and scratches of an infected animal."
The virus primarily affects the central nervous system and, without prompt treatment, leads to brain disease and death. "Immediate medical attention following suspected rabies exposure is critical," the CDC states.
While rabies is rare in humans in the United States, where fewer than 10 deaths are reported each year, it remains a serious global threat. Each year, an estimated 70,000 people die from the disease worldwide, with over 95 percent of those deaths caused by domestic dogs, according to CDC data. In the U.S., the CDC says, "more than 90 percent of reported cases of rabies in animals occur in wildlife," including raccoons, skunks, and bats—the latter being the leading cause of human rabies deaths domestically.
"I went to the hospital in the morning and explained what had happened and told them I hadn't had the preventative rabies vaccination," Sampson said. "This meant that they had to inject immunoglobulin into the site of the wound—this being my toes—which was very painful, to help prevent rabies in the area whilst the vaccine in my arm kicked in."
Sampson received a total of five rabies shots during her travels. They include three in Thailand and one in Bali, where she had to visit five different clinics due to a vaccine shortage. "Thailand had it readily available every time. But I am fully recovered now and so glad I didn't take the risk of not getting the vaccine as it's such a deadly disease," she told Newsweek. She also noted that her travel insurance covered the medical costs.
Sampson's experience highlights the risks travelers can face when interacting with animals abroad.
In a caption shared with the viral post, Sampson noted: "I'm laughing but it's not actually funny. Please be careful guys and get insurance."
A screenshot from a viral TikTok video of a woman who got bit by a cat in Thailand and had to rush to a hospital to get a rabies vaccination.
A screenshot from a viral TikTok video of a woman who got bit by a cat in Thailand and had to rush to a hospital to get a rabies vaccination.
@ on TikTok
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