Rabbits infectious diseases Flashcards
What type of virus is Myxomatosis?
- Leporipoxvirus
What spread myxomatosis?
- Fleas
- Mosquitoes
- Cheyletiella mites
What does clinical disease of myxomatosis depend on?
- Viral strain
- Season (vectors life cycle)
- Environmental temperature (cold)
- Age (maternal ABs 4-5 weeks)
- Immune function
- Vaccination status
What are clinical signs of myxomatosis?
- Eyelid thickening + purulent eye discharge;
- Nodules on ears, lips, nares, eyelids, external
genitalia; - Occ. Pneumonic signs;
- Infertility
- Death by starvation + 2ary infections
What is shope fibroma? What is its relevance to Myxomatosis?
- Different Leporipoxvirus
- Naturally infects American rabbit species
- Induces self-limiting fibromas/fibromatosis
- Cross-immunity against Myxomatosis
*Attenuated live Shope fibroma virus used in Myxo vaccines
How can you Prevent + Treat Myxomatosis?
- Tx = none effective, euthanasia advised, strict isolation
- Px = Vaccination - from 5 weeks of age + annual boosters
- External parasite control
- avoid contact with wild rabbits
What is viral haemorrhagic disease?
- Calicivirus
- Highly infectious + high mortality rates
- 2 Strains = VHD-1, VHD-2
- Only infects european wild rabbits + pet rabbits
How does VHD spread?
- Urine
- Faeces
- Aerosol
- Biting insects
How does VHD progress?
- Initial replication of calicivirus inside hepatocytes
= acute liver failure - DIC
- Fibrinous thrombi in lungs, heart + kidneys
= haemorrhage + organ failure - Death (within 3-4 days)
What are clinical signs of VHD?
- Sudden death
- Fever
- Increased RR
- Collapse, hypotension
- Neurological signs
- Haemorrhages (20-25% cases)
- In rabbits >4 weeks old
- Younger rabbits resistant to infection
How is VHD diagnosed?
- Clinical signs
- Gross pathology =
- Severe necrotizing hepatitis
- Enlarged spleen
- Haemorrhages (sp. Lungs)
- Histology
- PCR
How can you prevent + treat VHD?
- Tx = none - euthanasia of suspected cases (young rabbits <4wks can survive infection)
- Px = Vaccinate - from 5 wks + annual boosters
What are 3 different conditions of Papillomatosis?
- Shope papillomavirus – can cause SCC-like neoplasia in domestic rabbits. Endemic to USA.
- Oral papillomavirus – benign wart-like growths in the oral mucosa. Doesn’t progress to malignant changes and is self-limiting.
- Ano-rectal papillomatosis – NOT viral-induced. Cauli-flower masses that bleed easily
What is pasteurellosis?
- “snuffles”
- Pasteurella multocida
- Primary pathogens in immunosuppressed rabbits
- Secondary pathogen in abscesses
What can predispose rabbits to pasteurellosis?
- Stress / immunosuppression =
- Overcrowding
- Pregnancy / lactation
- Poor husbandry
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Poor ventilation
What are clinical signs of Pasteurellosis?
- Rhinitis (“snuffles”)
- Pneumonia
- Genital infections
- Wounds and abscesses
- Dacryocystitis - infection of lacrimal sac
- Otitis media/interna
How is pasteurellosis diagnosed?
- Deep nasal swab under GA
- Serology
- PCR
How is pasteurellosis managed?
- Reduce stress and overcrowding
- Improve husbandry
- Increase ventilation
- Avoid temperature fluctuations
- Isolate symptomatic rabbits
- Antibiotics based on C&S + supportive care + treat specific problems
What is the treponema infection in rabbits? How does it spread? What are CS, Dx, Ddx + Tx?
- Treponema paraluiscuniculi
- Genital infection - rabbit syphilis
- sexual + vertical transmission
- CS = nodules, crusty lesions that can ulcerate - vulva/prepuce + lips/nostrils
- Dx = Histo + special silver stain
- Ddx = myxomatosis, ano-rectal papillomatosis
- Tx = Penicillin SC weekly
What are different agents that can cause bacterial enteritis?
◦ Tyzzer’s disease (Clostridium piliforme)
◦ Clostridial entorotoxaemia
◦ Salmonella sp.
◦ E. coli
◦ Campylobacter spp
What is Tyzzer’s disease?
- Clostridium piliforme
- Affect young rabbits 6-12wks
- 2ary to stress
- CS =
◦ Acute phase: diarrhea, sudden death
◦ Chronic: intestinal fibrosis/stenosis, liver necrosis - Dx = serology? PCR
What is clostridial enterotoxaemia? What causes it?
- Clostridium spiriforme, C. difficile, C. perfringens
- Iota toxin
- Main causes =
◦ Diets rich in starch – Caecum overload
◦ Stress
◦ Antibiotics – specially if administered PO
What should be checked with rabbits with diarrhoea?
◦ Weight
◦ Dehydration %
◦ Temperature
◦ Gut sounds
◦ Blood glucose
◦ Routine faecal testing (check for coccidia)
What should be done to treat diarrhoea?
- Fluid therapy
- Diet management - high fiber, low starch
- Antibiotics - fluoroquinolone / metronidazole
- Other meds - analgesic, maropitant
What causes intestinal coccidiosis in rabbits? What are risk factors + CS?
- Eimeria spp (13 species)
- Risk factors = Groups / age (young)
- Cs = Diarrhoea (sometimes w blood) + weight loss
What causes hepatic (biliary) coccidiosis? What are clinical signs?
- Eimeria stiedae
- Diarrhoea + weight loss
- Hepatomegaly
- Jaundice
- Higher monrtality than intestinal
What is treatment of Cocci? Do rabbits become immune?
◦ TMP + Sulfas
◦ Toltrazuril
Also consider:
◦ Supportive care
◦ Diet management
◦ Reduce stress/improve husbandry
Intestinal – rabbits that recover become immune
Hepatic – chronic/permanent changes
What are internal parasites of rabbits?
- Pinworm = Passalurus ambiguus
- Tapeworms =
- Cysticercus pisiformis - peritoneal cavity / liver
- Coenurus serialis - SC tissues
- Echinococcus granulosus
What are external parasites of rabbits? Tx?
- Fleas - cat + dog fleas
- Lice - Haemodipsus ventricosus
- Mites =
- Ear mites - Psoroptes cuniculis
- Skin mites - Cheyletiella parasitovorax
- Fur mites - Leporacarus gibbus
- Tx = imidacloprid, Selamectin, Moxidectin
DO NOT use Fipronil
What causes flystrike? Where are rabbits most affected? How long does it take for maggots to form?
- Maggots of Lucilia spp + Calliphora spp
- Mostly affect tail base + perineum
- 3-4days
What are risk factors for flystrike?
◦ Outdoor rabbits
◦ Higher temperatures
◦ Soiled skin with u+/f+ - rabbits with diarrhea, pu-pd
◦ Overweight
◦ Difficulty grooming – arthritis, spinal disease
◦ Uneaten caecotrophs
How would you manage flystrike?
- Euthanasia in severe cases
- Remove maggots - sedate + clip, ivermectin SC, dry with blow dryer
- Analgesia - Meloxican +/- buprenorphine
- Supportive care = fluids, gut motility stimulants + antibiotics
How can you prevent flystrike?
- Cyromazine
- Good husbandry + hygiene
- Clip mats
What is Encephalitozoonosis? When do you get CS? What is the transmission?
- Encephalitozoon cuniculi
- Microsporidia
- Intracellular obligate parasite – most cells
- Clinical signs develop when infected cells rupture with spores.
- Transmission =
◦ Inhalation/ingestion of spores shed mostly in urine
◦ Vertical
What are clinical signs of encephalitozoonosis?
- Most cases = sub-clinical / non-symptomatic
- Neurological presentations
- Eye lesions
- CKD
What are Neurological presentations of encephalitozoonosis?
- Head tilt
- Nystagmus
- Facial paralysis
- Paresis/paralysis
- Muscle weakness
- Seizures
What are eye lesions of encephalitozoonosis?
- Phacoclastic uveitis
- Lens opacity/rupture
- Cataracts
What is seen with Chronic kidney disease from encephalitonzoonosis?
- Pu-pd
- Urine scald
- Progressive weigh loss
How is E. cuniculi diagnosed?
- Serology
◦ IgM – indicate recent/active infection
◦ IgG – indicate chronic infection or previous exposure
◦ Always interpret results with clinical signs and other tests - PCR – urine or faeces. But shedding of spores is intermittent
- On suspected cases try to include:
◦ Radiographs
◦ Biochemistry + Haematology
What is Tx of E. cuniculi?
- Fembendazole 20mg/kg PO 28 days
◦ Side effects: bone marrow suppression
◦ Only treat confirmed cases or with high suspicion - Anti-inflammatories
◦ NSAIDs – e.g. Meloxicam safer
◦ Corticoids – contra-indicated due to severe immunosuppressive side effects. - Antibiotics – Fluoroquinolones or Doxycycline
- Support medication
◦ Prochlorperazine
◦ Maropitant
* midazolam for seizures
* Eyedrops for ocular lesions / surgery
What are 5 possible outcomes of encephalitozoonosis infection?
- Recovery – very likely to remain sub clinically infected
- Neuro deficits – mild head tilt doesn’t affect patient’s QOL
- Enucleation – rabbits cope very well post-operatively
- CKD – management and monitoring
- Euthanasia
How can E. cuniculi be prevented?
- Serological testing and separating positives/negatives
- Strict hygiene
- Prophylactic use of Fenbendazole
- Improve husbandry and diet
- Reduce overcrowding
