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by ldvlmom on June 13th, 2006

ldvlmom

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My father used to hunt rabbits, and he said wild rabbits carried a virus that was fatal to rabbits and humans. He called it rabbit fever. Is there such a disease and what is the means of transmitting it from rabbits to humans?

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  • by Merry Walker on June 13th, 2006

    Merry Walker

    There is indeed such a disease. It's a bacterial infection called tularemia.

    Tularemia isn't limited only to rabbits; it's also found in other rodents. However, rabbits are probably the most common means of exposure for humans.

    Tularemia is most commonly transmitted to humans through direct contact with an infected animal or carcass through broken skin, or through the bite of a flea or tick that has also bitten an infected animal. It can also be transmited by ingesting infected meat, especially if the meat is undercooked.

    The disease is often treated with streptomycin and tetracycline. It's not a particularly deadly disease; death only occurs in about 5% of untreated cases and in less than 1% of treated cases. However, complications and secondary infections can include meningitis, pneumonia, and pericarditis, so you should seek medical treatment if you think you have it.

    You can read more about tularemia here:
    http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000856.htm

    There is a vaccine available for hunters and trappers and others at high risk for tularemia.

    When hunting rabbits, you can watch for tularmia by inspecting the rabbit's liver while cleaning. Tularemia generally causes white spots on the liver. If you find them on the rabbit's liver, dispose of the carcass safely and wash your hands and anything that came in contact with the rabbit carefully. If you've become infected, you'll typically develop flu-like symptoms within 3-5 days, but the incubation period can actually be anything from 1 - 14 days.

    You'll find more information at Wikipedia:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tularemia

    Comments

    • Great answer, very informative! I'll mention though that rabbits aren't rodents. +3

      Teresa

      by Teresa on April 19th, 2009

    • wow. Good excuse.

      Anymousee

      by Anymousee on November 20th, 2009

    • What do you mean Anymousee?

      Teresa

      by Teresa on November 25th, 2009

    • good excuse to kill rabbits and possibly rabbit-infected-people..?

      Anymousee

      by Anymousee on November 27th, 2009

    • I don't see any reason for that.

      Teresa

      by Teresa on November 30th, 2009

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