Bat found at San Diego restaurant tests positive for rabies

A bat landed on a table at the Yellow Deli restaurant in San Diego County around 1 p.m., where a family was dining, according to county officials. A patron used a towel to pick up the animal and delivered it to the San Diego Humane Society, which forwarded the specimen to the County Public Health Laboratory. Testing confirmed the bat was infected with rabies.

No direct skin contact with the bat has been reported, and officials said only individuals who touched or held the animal are at risk of exposure. > "Anyone who had direct contact with the bat or knows someone who may have should contact a health care provider as soon as possible," the health department advised. Post-exposure treatment is highly effective when administered before symptoms appear, but rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms develop.

The bat is the 22nd rabies-positive bat identified in San Diego County this year, surpassing the 21 cases recorded in 2025. Health officials reminded residents not to handle bats or other wildlife and to wash any exposed skin with soap before seeking medical advice. While bats are a common source of rabies in California, human cases remain rare; the most recent human infection was reported in 2024 in Fresno County after exposure to a bat in Merced County.