Twenty-one people in Maple Ridge are being vaccinated for rabies after a cat in the Lower Mainland city was diagnosed with the disease.

It's the first confirmed case of rabies in a domestic animal in B.C. since 1969, say health officials, who suspect the cat was bitten by a bat.

"In British Columbia, we really only have rabies ongoing in the bat population, so this is likely an exposure of the cat to a bat," said the Fraser Health Authority's Dr. Larry Gustafson.

Dr. Michael Orser, a veterinarian, said the male cat was brought in to his animal hospital last week. One of his legs was paralyzed, he was unco-ordinated and exceptionally aggressive, and clawed at the vet, drawing blood.

"If you touched anywhere near his head or neck area, it would want to attack. We, of course, had difficulty handling it, so we had to give it some sedation to take some blood samples," said Orser.

The first tests were inconclusive, he said, but a second set of blood samples came back positive for rabies. The cat had to be euthanized.

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Because it was the first case of rabies in a B.C. pet in many years, Orser said it's rarely considered when a pet is sick.