A Sydney mother has revealed how a split second encounter with a monkey at a popular sanctuary in Bali turned into a living nightmare, resulting in a medical bill greater than USD $3967.32.
Flavia McDonald, her husband and their 12-year-old daughter Lorena jetted off to the popular Indonesian holiday island on Father’s Day as a last-minute getaway surprise for the family.
“My daughter had the idea of finding some sun after so much rain in Sydney as a surprise for her dad for Father’s Day,” Ms. McDonald told news.com.au.
“I had been to Bali many times, but it was a place I had since hesitated about with kids because of Bali belly. I thought maybe when she [Lorana] was older … we could enjoy it more.
“But in August with so much rain around Sydney, my daughter had the idea of a sunny place for a holiday to give as a Father’s Day gift.
“So we gave him the surprise on Saturday 5th September before flying out the next day on Father’s Day morning to Bali. We thought it would be a memorable week … being by the pool in sunny Bali would be remarkable.”
Ms. McDonald said once arriving, the weather wasn’t quite working in their favor — with overcast skies and heavy showers plaguing the start of their trip.
In a bid to get out and about despite the unfavourable weather, Ms. McDonald said that the trio decided to venture from their hotel in Seminyak to Ubud, where the local forecast showed less rain and they could visit the famous monkey forest.
“Ubud would be something different … something fun,” Ms. McDonald said of the plan.
“So we decided to do a half day in Ubud on the Wednesday … and with storms forecast in the afternoon, we thought the park would take us an hour and a half in the morning and we would be able to return to Seminyak by 12pm.
“We got to the sanctuary and it was super busy … I have been in the park before, but it was just so busy [presumably because of the weather].”
After receiving all the information upon arrival to the sanctuary about how to be safe around the resident monkeys, Ms. McDonald confirmed her family didn’t have an open bag, sunglasses or hats that they could snatch.
“We walked around for about 40 minutes, and within one area of the park there’s an amphitheatre where people can sit,” she explained.
“Heaps of people were sitting, so my husband and daughter sat there too. We could see monkeys, but none literally on or around people. But within one minute, a monkey jumped on my husband’s shoulders … and within seconds it went from his shoulder to my daughter’s.
“She was paralyzed [in fear] and we kind of knew we couldn’t make any abrupt movements [or the monkey could attack]. So the monkey started pulling at her shirt, her pockets, looking in her top and as I got close to her to shush it away, within five seconds, it just bit her on the neck.
“I was petrified but wanted to keep calm so she wouldn’t panic … and make things worse.”
Ms. McDonald said while there were plenty of visitors to the park, especially around the seating area where the attack occurred, nobody employed by the park was present supervising or to assist.
Ms. McDonald said that because her daughter was in such shock, she didn’t feel the pain of the bite — which had pierced the skin and drawn blood.
“I looked down at her neck, and I just said ‘oh my god’,” Ms. McDonald recalled.
“She thought it was a scratch … but then we saw the bite mark with blood.
“We read all the guidelines, and one was to not establish eye contact. So we knew not to get close, don’t make contact … but she was just petrified with the monkey on top of her.
“The whole thing was just so fast.”
Ms. McDonald said her daughter was in such shock, she was quickly taken to first aid at the sanctuary where the staff dismissed concerns of rabies because the “monkeys were very clean”. Instead of suggesting she go to a medical centre, Ms. McDonald’s daughter was bathed in water and soap which staff said would suffice.
“They kept saying we don’t need to worry,” she said.
“She was bleeding … and I was just thinking, this is not enough. I was exploding inside. All my research was saying this was very dangerous and that she needs to go to a clinic with the rabies vaccine.”
So after obtaining details of the closest clinic with a rabies vaccine, Ms. McDonald said the advice online was to “act quickly” especially if the bite is on the upper body.
“By the time we arrived to the clinic, my daughter was in real shock,” she said.
“Then I got the shock when I got the medical bill of 69 million Indonesian Rupiah [which is USD $4165.69].”
While the couple had travel insurance, the emergency situation meant funds wouldn’t be released for several days — so Ms. McDonald had to dip into their own personal funds to cover the vaccine on the spot.
“It was ridiculous,” she said of the rabies injections.
“One of the injections actually had to go in the area of the bite, so my daughter … who is 12 … I have never seen her scream like the way she did in that hospital.
“One injection went into the top of the bite, one in the bottom of the bite, one in the arm and one in the leg.
“So it was two vaccines, and both rabies related … and she’s also taking medicine for herpes virus B infection, so six tablets a day for two weeks.”
Earlier this year, Aussie travellers were issued with a warning about rabies after a spike in infection rates were recorded in Bali
Rabies-positive animals have been detected in ‘red zones’ areas such as South Kuta, Nusa-Dua, Tanjung Benoa, Jimbara and Changgu.
The acting head of animal health Anak Agung Istri Brahmi Witari told the Courier Mail in August that no more than five dogs were responsible for the cases.
“The dominance of the red zone in South Kuta is because the terrain has many bushes, so it is used as a nest by wild dogs, and this is one of the reasons,” Mr. Witari said.
The Courier Mail reported the Bali State Polytechnic Campus in Jimbaran and on Jalan Pratama vaccinated stray dogs on July 10, and victims were directed to local health clinics for treatment.
Smart Traveller warned Australians rabies was presently a risk through Indonesia and the disease was 100 per cent fatal.
The website said the deadly disease was mainly transmitted by bites from infected dogs, cats and monkey, but could also be transmitted by other mammals.
As a result of the warning, travellers have been urged to get vaccinated before they travelled to the popular holiday spot.
“If I had read anything like this, anything similar, I would’ve had a different approach to going to the park,” Ms. McDonald said, hoping her daughter’s story will spread awareness to other travellers heading to Bali.
“I would’ve been a little more aware that something like this can actually happen. It ruined the trip for us.”
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