Skunk found with rabies in Kootenay Lake area not considered ongoing concern

This story originally aired on Kootenay Morning, on September 23, 2026:

By Jaime Frederick, Local Journalism Initiative

Late last week, Interior Health (IH) warned the public that the rabies virus had been detected in a skunk in the Kootenay Lake region.

A physician epidemiologist with the BC Centre for Disease Control, says that the skunk was tested and confirmed to have been carrying a variant of rabies commonly found in bats. Dr. Mayank Singal says the avian mammals are known carriers of rabies in BC, and, while rare, it’s not entirely uncommon for a terrestrial animal, such as a skunk, to contract rabies from a bat.

“We see this about twice a decade,” said Singal.” There can be a spillover event, whereby the bat variant of rabies can go from bats into the skunk, and we think it’s probably because the skunk was perhaps bitten by a bat, and that’s how it acquired the rabies.”

Singal says that now that the skunk has died, there is no ongoing risk to the general public from skunks or other terrestrial animals here in BC, though bats remain a concern.

“We’re quite unique in that compared to other parts of the world, including other parts of North America, where there is terrestrial animal rabies. So generally we do think that BC continues to be at very, very low risk of rabies exposure from terrestrial animals. Of course, bats are the reservoir that do exist. So we do continue to recommend [people] seek medical assessment if somebody feels they’ve been bitten or scratched by a bat.”

Similarly, as rabies can have neurological effects, if someone does see a terrestrial animal, such as a skunk, raccoon, or rodent exhibiting abnormal behaviours, Singal advises them to keep their distance and contact the BC Conservation Officer Service (COS) through its public reporting line. 

“The most important thing I would say is to make sure that they’re not interacting with that animal, try to maintain your distance,” said Singal. “We obviously don’t want people to be getting bitten or otherwise hurt by a potentially sick animal.”

Likewise, if someone believes that their pet has come in contact with a bat or another animal exhibiting abnormal behaviours, people should contact their veterinarian.

“Wild animals are, of course, wild, right?” said Singal. “So they can be aggressive in some cases. For example, if we get in between them and their food, between them and their next of kin, that will generate some type of a response from the animal and that’s to be expected. What we don’t expect is for an animal to typically attack, most of these animals, to attack humans without provocation. So that’s something that we would consider to be a bit of an abnormal side of their behaviour.”

Interior Health says the rabies virus can’t be spread through the spray, urine or feces of an infected animal. It is most commonly transmitted through a bite or sometimes a scratch. If you think you have encountered a wild animal that may be infected with rabies, please call the COS RAPP line at 1-877-952-7277.