The 2026 Pleasanton Rabies Case
A recent case in Pleasanton, California involved an indoor-only cat that was ultimately diagnosed with rabies. According to the Pleasanton Weekly, the cat lived primarily indoors but had access to a second-story balcony, where public health officials believe it may have encountered an infected bat. The family never knew an exposure had occurred. When the cat first became sick, they believed it had developed a urinary tract infection and sought veterinary care but its condition continued to worsen despite treatment. Rabies was ultimately confirmed, and testing identified a bat variant of the virus, making an unnoticed encounter with a bat the most likely source. Once the diagnosis was confirmed, family members who may have been exposed received rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) as a precaution.
Here’s what makes this case important for indoor-cat owners: there was no obvious wildlife encounter to point to.
Public health officials investigated the property and found no evidence that bats were living in or around the home. Bat bites can be extremely small and easy to miss, and sometimes an exposure simply isn’t witnessed.
An indoor cat is certainly less likely to encounter rabies, but less likely doesn’t mean impossible. Rabies in domestic cats is rare, and Alameda County officials emphasized that this was an isolated case and that the overall risk to the public remained low. Bats, however, remain the primary carrier of rabies in the county. According to the article, 27 bats tested positive between 2019 and 2025, including eight in 2025 alone. Vaccination becomes especially important when a possible exposure does occur: vaccinated pets are generally subject to a much shorter period of observation or quarantine, while an unvaccinated pet may face months of strict isolation depending on the circumstances and public-health guidance.
The Pleasanton Weekly article gets the most important takeaway right: even indoor cats should stay current on their rabies vaccines. But there’s one part of the story that deserves a closer look. The article reports that the cat “tested positive for rabies,” and that wording can make the diagnostic process sound more straightforward than it actually is.
How Is Rabies Diagnosed?
“There is no ante-mortem (before death) test for rabies in cats. If a cat (or dog, cow, horse, sheep, racoon, skunk. . . . .not possums!) shows signs of rabies, it must be euthanized and its brain tested to prove it has rabies. - Dr. Kong, DVM
Rabies doesn’t follow the usual diagnostic playbook. Instead of circulating through the bloodstream, the virus travels through the nervous system, eventually reaching the brain. Because of this, there is currently no blood test or routine laboratory test that can confirm rabies in a living animal. The only definitive diagnosis comes from specialized testing of brain tissue after death. So when an article says an animal “tested positive for rabies,” that wording can be easy to misunderstand. The animal can absolutely test positive, but that confirmation happens through post-mortem testing, not through a routine blood test performed while the animal is alive.
Why Was The Cat Euthanized?
“Based on the information provided in the article, this cat likely developed clinical signs that its veterinarian recognized as consistent with rabies. The veterinarian then likely followed the legally required public health protocol by recommending euthanasia and submitting the brain for testing.” - Dr. Kong, DVM
The article doesn’t tell us exactly what happened inside the exam room, so we can’t know every decision the veterinary team made. What we do know is that once an animal begins showing signs that raise a serious concern for rabies, this stops being an ordinary diagnostic workup. There is no way to confirm the diagnosis while the animal is alive, and waiting carries its own consequences. Rabies is nearly always fatal once clinical signs appear, and exposure to infected saliva or nervous tissue can put family members, veterinary staff and other animals at risk. In a suspected case, euthanasia and testing may therefore be required—not because rabies has already been confirmed, but because post-mortem testing is the only way to confirm it.
What Are Rabies Titers?
“Titers tell us whether a patient’s rabies vaccine has successfully produced protective antibodies should that patient ever be exposed to rabies. They do not diagnose rabies infection. Some island countries that have never had rabies, like Australia and Great Britain, require proof of a protective titer before allowing pets from endemic countries (countries where rabies is present in the wildlife population - hint, every continent except Antarctica) to enter their country. Even Hawaii has never had naturally occurring rabies and requires specific vaccination and titer testing protocols before pets are permitted to enter the islands.”- Dr. Kong, DVM
This is where the word “test” can get confusing. A rabies titer does involve a blood sample, but it isn’t looking for the rabies virus; it’s looking for antibodies. It helps determine whether an animal has produced an immune response following rabies vaccination. That distinction is why titers are useful for things like international travel. Some places that have remained free of naturally occurring rabies require proof that an entering animal has been appropriately vaccinated and developed an adequate antibody response. Those requirements are designed to prevent rabies from being introduced into places where it doesn’t already exist. A rabies titer can tell us something useful about an animal’s response to vaccination;
it cannot tell us whether that animal currently has rabies.
Why Should Indoor Cats Still Be Vaccinated?
“In the case of rabies, safe is ALWAYS better than sorry. Please ensure that even your indoor cats are vaccinated.” - Dr. Kong, DMV
For an indoor cat, rabies vaccination can feel easy to put lower on the list, especially when they’ve never set a paw outside. Cases like this are a reminder of why it shouldn't be. Rabies is rare, but the consequences of an unexpected exposure are serious, and vaccination gives us protection before we ever need it. And that protection matters beyond the initial exposure. A cat’s vaccination status can affect the public-health response afterward, including how an exposed animal may need to be monitored or quarantined. Keeping that vaccine current protects your cat while also giving everyone involved a much better starting point if the unexpected does happen.
If you’re not sure whether your cat is current on their rabies vaccine, give us a call. We’re happy to check their vaccination history and let you know when they’re due!
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