Pennsylvania Game News - January 2021 - 36

from rabbit to rabbit, and indirectly
through feces, urine, blood-feeding
insects and other vectors, Boyd said. It
is believed the movement of infected
domestic rabbits, carcasses or contaminated equipment likely contributed to
the virus' spread in wild rabbit populations in the U.S.
Where this highly contagious virus
exists, hunters also can spread it by
shooting infected rabbits in one area and
field-dressing them - leaving entrails on
the ground - in an unaffected area.
Past RHDV2 reported cases that were
closest to Pennsylvania were contained
to small domestic outbreaks. First in a
pet rabbit in Ohio in September 2018
and more recently in 13 domestic rabbits in New York City in February 2020.
The ongoing outbreak in the Southwest
isn't related to these closer-to-home
occurrences, based on purchase-record
tracing.
Following its emergence in 2010,
RHDV2 quickly spread throughout
Europe and into surrounding Mediterranean countries. The American Society
for Microbiology's Journal of Virology
reported in January 2018 that RHDV2
was detected in Australia in 2015 and,
within 18 months, had spread to rabbit
populations across the entirety of the
country. For comparison's sake, Australia's roughly 3 million square miles
is equivalent in size to America's 48
contiguous states.
California, where RHDV2 first
surfaced in May, has established a
quarantine on rabbits entering its borders, prohibiting rabbits from any state
that had a RHDV case in the past year,
unless they have a Certificate of Veterinary Inspection. Pennsylvania passed a
similar order in September.
Those who raise domestic rabbits
36

should be on the lookout for RHDV2's
symptoms, which include loss of appetite, lethargy, high fever, seizures, jaundice, bleeding from the nose, mouth, or
rectum, difficulty breathing and sudden
death. Get guidance from your veterinarian if symptoms appear. And don't allow
domestic rabbits to roam freely, even in
a small area in your backyard, since the
disease can spread to or from wild or
domestic rabbits.
Boyd noted RHDV2's potential to
spread further in North America likely
will be influenced by the public's willingness to follow quarantines and other
rules to protect rabbits. In addition to
pet-rearing and hunting, other rabbitrelated activities in the United States
involve raising rabbits for meat, Angora
wool, breeding stock and laboratory use.
Countless young rabbits also are taken
annually to wildlife rehabilitators.

PREVENTION PLAN
Since there is no treatment for the
disease and eradication of the virus from
wild populations is inherently difficult,
prevention remains the best method for
protecting wild rabbit and hare populations.
Meanwhile, the Game Commission
has started field studies investigating
rabbit and hare genetics to help to better
understand how native populations
traverse Pennsylvania's mountains,
rivers and other natural and manmade
obstacles, Boyd said.
" This research will help us to predict
movement of this disease across the
Commonwealth, should it reach us, "
she said.
The Game Commission also is
seeking to create a list of potential
collaborators to assist the agency
with disease-monitoring in upcoming

Pennsylvania Game News - January 2021

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