Chemainus kitten did not have rabies: Island Health

A free-roaming kitten that Island Health previously said had rabies has since been confirmed to not have the deadly disease.

In July, Island Health sent out a notification that a kitten that had been free-roaming kitten had tested positive for rabies.

READ PREVIOUS: Rabies confirmed in kitten captured in rural area in Chemainus: Island Health

Now, Island Health says further testing has taken place, which confirms the kitten did not have rabies.

“The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s rabies laboratory conducted extensive testing and confirmed the negative rabies test result on August 21,” Island Health says in a news release.

“The original test in July was a very rare ‘false positive’ result.”

When conducting the tests, the kitten had to be euthanized to conduct standard brain tissue