VISTA — San Diego County Public Health Services officials are looking for anyone who may have come into contact with a bat that recently startled customers at the Yellow Deli restaurant in Vista and later tested positive for rabies.
The bat landed on a table while a family was eating at the downtown Vista restaurant around 1 p.m. on July 19. Another diner collected the bat with a towel and brought it to the Humane Society in Oceanside, where it was then transferred to the county’s Public Health Lab.
At the lab, the bat tested positive for rabies.
Public health officials said no one has reported having any direct skin contact with the bat. However, anyone who directly touched or held the bat could be at risk for rabies and should contact their doctor.
“If you or someone in your family or group had direct contact with this bat or you know of someone who may have touched the bat, County Public Health Services urges you to call your health care provider as soon as possible,” the county said in a July 23 press release.
Those who have been exposed can prevent rabies by receiving rabies post-exposure prophylaxis, which includes medication and a vaccine series. Rabies symptoms can take weeks to months to appear, and once they begin, there is no treatment, and it is nearly always fatal, the county said.
Human rabies infections are rare thanks to prevention efforts. In 2024, a Fresno County woman died after being exposed to rabies by a bat.
Officials say this is the 22nd bat to test positive for rabies in San Diego County this year. In 2025, 21 bats tested positive.
The County Public Health Department reminded residents to respect the space of bats and other wildlife and avoid touching or approaching them.
Officials noted that bats play an important role in the local ecosystem by feeding on insects like mosquitoes and pollinating plants by feeding on nectar. They are most often seen around sunset, when they are most active.
