Quebec has confirmed a third case of raccoon rabies in a cat this year, prompting renewed calls for pet vaccination as the virus continues to spread across the province.

Officials detected the infection on September 25 in Saint-Denis-sur-Richelieu, in the Montérégie region. The cat’s owner and a veterinarian were exposed to the virus and received treatment, according to the CBC.

Quebec has reported 313 confirmed cases of raccoon rabies this year. Officials previously confirmed two infected cats in late June.

“It is weird to see all these cats [get infected.] Just three cats, but still — it’s just unusual, we haven’t seen that,” Michael Libman, a professor in McGill University’s division of infectious diseases, told the CBC. The cases raise questions about whether awareness of pet vaccination is declining, he adds.

Cases of raccoon rabies have spiked sharply in Quebec since 2024. Provincial data recorded one case that year, 93 in 2025, and 313 so far this year.

Authorities have introduced vaccination measures to limit transmission, including distributing vaccine bait and conducting trap-vaccinate-release operations.

Quebec’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food also mandated the Université de Montréal’s faculty of veterinary medicine to operate pet vaccination clinics in several regions, the CBC reports.

The clinics offer rabies vaccinations for cats and dogs for $15 and are scheduled to run until late November.

The ministry advised owners to supervise pets outdoors and consult a veterinarian about unexplained wounds, even when their animals have up-to-date rabies vaccinations.