A veterinarian is warning of a surge in encounters with bats in British Columbia’s Sea to Sky region after one of the mammals that had direct contact with a human tested positive for rabies. Jordie Schnarr, managing veterinarian with Coast Mountain Veterinary Services in Whistler, says the animal was brought in by health officials for testing in mid-July, and results from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency came back positive for the deadly disease. Schnarr says she doesn’t know what happened to the person who came into contact with the bat and the Vancouver Coastal Health authority did not immediately answer questions about whether they became infected. She says a medical health officer with the authority recommended that she get two rabies boosters, even though she had been vaccinated against the disease multiple times before. Schnarr says the clinic has seen a “noticeable increase” in reported encounters between bats and pets, with 25 people bringing in pets so far this year, compared with fewer than five cases last year. The Whistler case isn’t isolated, with Coastland Veterinary Hospital in Campbell River on Vancouver Island warning this week that a bat found in the area tested positive for rabies on July 24. Campbell River Public Health says rabies remains uncommon in B.C., but a single rabies-positive bat isn’t unusual as bats are a “natural part of our ecosystem and a small number may carry rabies.” The last human case of rabies in B.C. occurred in 2019 when a Vancouver Island man died. BC Centre for Disease Control says the risk of rabies infection remains low, and less than 0.5 per cent of bats in the province carry rabies. The BC Community Bat Program encourages residents to leave bats alone at this time of the year since they are moving around, and people are more likely to see them. Schnarr says the recent surge in encounters with bats underlines the importance of pets getting a routine rabies vaccination. This report by Nono Shen, The Canadian Press, was first published Aug. 20, 2026.
