“Color Up My World” singer Hailey Whitters will forever look before she sits after encountering a bat in an unlikely spot: Her toilet.
The country singer took part in a TikTok trend — “He/she doesn’t know it yet, but …” — that finds users posting video of themselves before tragedy strikes or something truly unbelievable happens.
In Whitters’ case, it’s (hopefully) a once-in-a-lifetime story. She doesn’t even have to talk in the clip, which is just text over footage of her trying to trap a bat with a trash can. The bat is in her toilet, just hanging out below the inner rim.
The text gives more context: “She doesn’t know it yet, but she’s about to get five rabies shots from peeing in this toilet before she knew there was a bat in there,” Whitters writes.
“She” is the singer.
A pest control person suggested to the country artist that the bat may have come through her chimney, “[but I’m] not sure how it found the toilet,” Whitters says in the comments section (quote via People).
She also tells fans that she got the necessary rabies shots, and that “we are good over here.”
What Should You Do If There’s a Bat in Your House?
Google says you should “encourage it to leave” if you encounter a bat in your home. But if that’s too much pressure, the experts at Bat Conversation International suggest: “The first thing you should do is call somebody that is an expert in handling bats.”
If you make close contact with a bat — like Whitters did, when she unknowingly sat down on the toilet with a bat below her — you need to be treated for rabies just in case, because it can be deadly. A bat bite is also fairly subtle, like a small prick, and rabies can be passed through saliva.
The CDC says that bats showing unusual behavior — like posting up inside of a toilet, for example — are more likely to have rabies. Bats live in nearly all of the 50 states.
Who Is Hailey Whitters?
Whitters is a country singer-songwriter originally from Iowa. Her breakout song, “Ten Year Town” (2019), reflected on her 12-year experience of trying to “make it” in Nashville. She scored an opening slot on Maren Morris‘ tour the year she released it, then with Jordan Davis in 2020.
In 2023, she won New Female Artist of the Year at the ACM Awards and opened up shows for Luke Combs in 2024. She has also penned songs for artists like Little Big Town and Alan Jackson during her time in Music City.
The 10 Best Country Songs of the Last 10 Years (2015-2024)
The fun part in researching the 10 best country songs of the last 10 years is realizing which “new” songs aren’t eligible because time has wings, apparently.
Gallery Credit: Billy Dukes
