Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Confirmed in Ohio

[LittlePuffyTail]

This is the info from the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Sorry you have to copy/paste. 

agri.ohio.gov   [edited to add clickable link]

[Bunny House]

Oh no…. so how did it even get into the bunny….

[Bam]

I can’t get the link to open.

Here they’ve just recently found that RVHD2 can affect and kill hares (jack rabbits) as well as rabbits, and that it can be transferred between rabbits and hares. This is rather alarming news.

Vilde had his RVHD2 shot yesterday.

[Bunny House]

And we don’t have any vaccines in the US right? It was spotted in Canada in March and it’s already made it to the US. Do you guys think itl spread fast here? Especially since winter is coming and birds will be coming down to the south for winter

[Q8bunny]

Doubt it came from Canada. Vancouver Island and Ohio are pretty much on opposite sides of the continent. Impossible to spread without any cases in between. lol

This virus is quite readily spread via rabbit pelts imported from places like China. Thank you, fashion industry. So my money’s on imported pathogen rather than local wildlife carrying it from thousands of km away.

[LittlePuffyTail]

So horrible that bunnies are dying and us bunny lovers have to worry because of something humans released.

Vaccines were only available in BC during the last outbreak. Not available here for us on the East Coast or in US.

A lot of people on my FB bunny groups are wondering about the dangers of getting outside hay. Most of us order Oxbow. I’m like scared to buy more and Elara is getting low. I emailed Oxbow asking about possible contamination but no reply yet. Scary stuff.

[Wick & Fable]

Dr. Kohles from Oxbow spoke about this at the beginning of his latest Ask a Vet Live: http://bit.ly/2OSEmvO

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Bunny House]

This is horrifying. I really hope it was an isolated incidence but we have a 3-9 day window before we know to stop it but then it will be too late, it would have already spread to other birds right and then to other bugs and buns?

[Boing]

I’d never heard of this and the link didn’t work. What do should we do to help our bunnies? There are no vaccines in Ontario for rabbits.

[LBJ10]

Oxbow is no where near Ohio. I don’t know where all of their hay comes from. Is it all local or do they acquire it from different places?

[Sofia]

The link won’t open but I found another article about it. Hope they make a vaccine for it soon. Stay safe everybun

[Bam]

I still think Oxbow hay would be the safest. The disease is still not widespread in the USA like it is in Europe. But it’s good that consumers contact Oxbow about it, so they know there is a demand for safe hay.

The routes of transmission are not yet quite clear. We had a case last winter with hare on an isolated island where people other than wildlife inspectors only come in the summer. The hare was confirmed dead from RVHD2. How did it get the disease is not known. Ticks and mosquitos wouldn’t be much of an issue in winter, although technically the odd tick could be active. The main theory for now is ingestion of plant material that’s been contaminated with feces from scavenging birds from the mainland. But noone really knows, so I’m glad there’s ongoing research.

In the UK it was a vet-spearmheaded movement to get the import license for the vaccine. It was the same here where I am: There was a clear public demand, prompting vet clinics to apply for the license and then import the vaccine. It was easier here though since the main vaccine producing countries (Spain and France) are in the EU.

[joea64]

Just saw this and it worries me, too. Panda and Fernando spend most of their time at home with me and don’t usually come into contact with other bunnies, though they’ll be going to bunny-sitting at Friends of Rabbits in Columbia, MD next Thursday until the following Monday. As far as hay goes, Friends of Rabbits sources theirs from, I believe, Standlee in Washington State, which is of course a very long way from Ohio. I’ll have to talk about it with them next week.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Still no reply from Oxbow.

[Q8bunny]

We buy Small Pet Select (also from Washington), but it’s all one scary game of Russian roulette. This pathetic continent needs to start supporting rabbit welfare the way they do that of dogs and cats, and a good start would be obtaining the licenses for the two RHV and the one myxo vaccines.

[Bunny House]

I agree Q8bunny. Buns are still looked at as farm animals here and not pets

[LittlePuffyTail]

Just got a reply from Oxbow:

We have received a number of questions from concerned pet parents regarding the news of a recently confirmed case of Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease (RHD) in Ohio. As many pet parents know, RHD is a highly contagious disease caused by a Calicivirus that affects wild and domesticated European rabbits (from which domesticated rabbits in the U.S. are descended). The new strain of the virus, RHD2, was confirmed in regards to the case in Ohio. Several of the questions we have received involve concerns about potential contamination of food products such as hay and pellets. We would like to assure pet parents that the transmission of RHD2 from a packaged product such as hay or food is exceedingly unlikely. While RHD2 can be transmitted via fomite (non-living objects), this transmission would require the presence of an infected animal in a hay field, as well as specific environmental conditions which supported the stability of the virus. The majority of Oxbow hay is grown in the western region of the United States; it is very important to note that RHD and RHD2 are not known to affect native species of rabbits such as cottontails and jackrabbits that may be present in the habitat of a hay field in the U.S.

Dr. Kohles reports that the entire small animal veterinary community is working very hard to advance the community’s collective understanding of this dangerous disease. In the meantime, for valuable information on how RHD and RHD2 are spread and how to protect your rabbits, the House Rabbit Society has a comprehensive educational page dedicated at http://www.rabbit.org/vhd.

[Q8bunny]

Thanks for posting this, LPT. A tiny bit of comfort for me personally, but not a whole lot until we can get access to the protective jabs for our floofs. ??

[Bunny House]

That is true, thank you LPT! I told my vet about it since she did hear about it yet and will be missing her exotic education seminar next week. Hopefully she will be able to get back to me once she finds out more information and I will post here
!

[Azerane]

It’s certainly worrying but try not to panic or worry too much. For an isolated incident, yes it can spread but I wouldn’t think there would be a very high risk of spread. While obviously it’s not known yet whether cottontails will or won’t carry this strain, if they don’t there’s far less risk of spread. Especially in a rural area. We had dozens and dozens of cases of RHDV2 and plenty of unconfirmed ones last year when it really took off, our rabbits can’t be vaccinated for the RHDV2 strain, so it’s just indoors only for the buns, and prevention of flying insects inside. They still need to eat hay so I I kept buying hay from my usual place. I know some people who took precautions of stocking up on hay from the previous hay season, but no single preventative measure is 100%. So be cautious, but it’s much too taxing to panic about all the time. In my mind I’ve done what I can for them by keeping them indoors and having them up to date with their RHDV vaccine, beyond that is really beyond my control.

Fortunately, I now have a great bug catcher in the house in the form of Jasiri, who happily dispatches any flies or mosquitoes in a prompt manner

[Q8bunny]

So some kittehs DO earn their keep!

[LittlePuffyTail]

I don’t have one of those. 

Hope this pic makes you all smile, though, in an otherwise very gloomy thread. 

[LBJ10]

LPT – Kyle earns his keep by providing adorable kitty pictures.

I agree with Az. I don’t think there is reason to panic just yet.

[CaptainNightBundit]

Oh yikes! My home state! Glad me and my little lady got out of there, here’s hoping this was an isolated case and there isn’t much spreading, sounds absolutely horrifying…

[Q8bunny]

Couch potato kitteh!

[Rabbitpossm]

): I’m very sad that this is still spreading. It came over from Vancouver Island to the lower mainland of Vancouver, most cases were confirmed in Richmond I think. The sanctuary I volunteered at was on lockdown. We had to spray our shoes and wear those hospital booties when we went entered the property. All adoptions were even put on hold until the vaccines came in, from Europe if I recall. Quite an event when vaccine day did come. All the rabbits at the sanctuary got vaccinated and the woman running it had everyone who adopted a rabbit from their come in to get the vaccine for an exceedingly low price just to make sure that everyone could get it.

Hopefully Ohio and other effected areas can get the vaccine in their province/state. Cause it does exist, it’s just a matter of the vets getting it.

[Q8bunny]

I really hope Ontario will request it

[LittlePuffyTail]

Yeah, I followed the Vancouver situation very closely. With the way it can spread, it would be no surprise to find in on another end of the country. Very scary stuff.

[emm_renn]

I am so sad to hear that this awful virus is spreading in a state over from where I am. I just saw that Midwest Bunfest has been canceled due to the virus. I am so disappointed but I would hate to see more rabbits affected by this.

[Muj Mom N Bun]

This is terrible… and yes, indeed more to worry about since disease can spread so fast… hopefully winter will slow it down, and not just move it around…but the best resolution is having this vaccine available.

And… LPT… DANG… That’s quite a kitty cat ya got going on there….

[LittlePuffyTail]

Yes, I just saw today too about Midfest Bunfest. I think it’s good they cancelled. Not worth the risk but I hope the supporters will still rally and help raise funds for the shelters that benefit from the event.

MujMom- Yes, that’s my Kyle. He is quite a guy.

[BeanMode]

I’m a central ohio bunny owner, even 1.5 hours away it’s still far too close for comfort. Our yearly wellness check got postponed because the vets are all being super cautious. We’re super super sad about Midwest bunfest being cancelled this year but we heard OHRR is planning to promote other rescue’s fundraisers/their sponsors and vendors as much as they can via social media.

[A Happy Herd of Hares]

I’ve spoken to a Rehaber, it’s in Michigan but she’s seen diseases similar before, and all those wild rabbits die over winter, so by spring all infected animals are gone.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Now they are saying it may be spreading to hares and could devastate their population. Man is truly a monster….

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201…d-rabbits/

[Q8bunny]

Our species behaves very much like a virus, when you stop to think about it…

[LittlePuffyTail]

Yes, it’s true. A horrible plague to animals and the environment.

[joea64]

I just hope it doesn’t spread to Virginia. The last time Panda and Fernando had any contact with any other rabbits was a couple of weeks ago when I took them to Maryland for bunny-sitting at Friends of Rabbits; as far as I know, there’s no RHD in Maryland and my two buns seem perfectly fine but I’m going to discuss it with the vet when they have their next semiannual checkup (tentatively scheduled for early next month). They’ll be traveling with me to North Carolina for Thanksgiving later in November, so I also hope NC is RHD-free then.

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