# rabbit fever



## MarysRose (Jul 2, 2006)

I mentioned to a friend that I was considering raising rabbits; but they said to me; why raise rabbits, you cannot even eat them in the summer.

I know my Dad never went rabbit hunting until the first hard freeze; but surely domestically raised rabbit don't get rabbit fever. Am I wrong?

Mary


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## lscheopner (Jan 3, 2006)

That is for wild not domestic rabbit. You can eat domestic rabbit year round. Can't remember the reason but sure someone will come along and tell ya. I know our wild rabbits are covered with fleas in the summer. 

Laina


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## MarysRose (Jul 2, 2006)

thank you for your response.

Mary


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## x_xbirdie (Mar 19, 2006)

you can eat them all year


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## Carrie C (Apr 7, 2005)

I'd like to learn more about rabbit fever AKA tulmeria (sp?). I've heard, but am not sure, that it can be transmitted to domestic rabbits by wild rabbits. 
As like all year around, I make sure they are acting ok before I butcher them, but you can for sure eat domestic rabbit in the summer.
And I'd still like to learn more about "Rabbit Fever".
~Carrie C.


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## MarysRose (Jul 2, 2006)

thank you all for your replies; I feel better now. 

One Bridge Crossed!

Mary


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

you can eat rabbit all year, the only reason you dont have a Hunting Season on rabbit durring the spring/summer is because its breeding season, sence there is not any real good way to tell what sex a rabbit is before you shoot it in the wild you dont hunt when the spiecies is recooping from the last hunting season,


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## Al. Countryboy (Oct 2, 2004)

I had rabbit for dinner tonight. It was butchered a couple months ago and sure was good. I plan to put a BQ sauce on part of it for sandwiches and want to give rabbit sausage a try with the rest.


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## orphy (Feb 27, 2006)

tuleremia is spread by rabbits that come in contact with lots of ticks. Thats why you don't eat deer until fall. The domesticated rabbit that is full of ticks is not being well taken care of. But you can eat a well cared for domestic rabbit anytime. If you are buying dressed rabbit from someone private you may want to see how they care for their rabbits. You can also get tuleremia from rabbit scratches. But again it is spread by ticks. The only reason I know this is my doctor and I looked it up together.


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

what is tuleremia? i am sure people at rabbit and dear All year long for hundreds of years and it didnt kill them, lots of other things prolly did but not eating meat


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## MaineFarmMom (Dec 29, 2002)

KSALguy said:


> what is tuleremia? i am sure people at rabbit and dear All year long for hundreds of years and it didnt kill them, lots of other things prolly did but not eating meat


Tularemia is a bacterial infection. http://www.idph.state.il.us/public/hb/hbtulare.htm

Hundreds of years ago, tularemia wasn't a problem. It wasn't discovered in the US until the early 1900's. Antibiotics were discovered soon after, in 1929.


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

is this something that just simply COOKING the food wont kill off? alot of stuff is deadly or will make you sick but if you cook the meat right your perfectly safe


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## Tucker (Jan 4, 2005)

Not only do you not hunt wild rabbit / squirles during the warm months because its breeding time ,,

:nerd: but to quote my dad ,, "its cause they are wormy when its hot " 

I don't think he is refering to intestinal worms (?) ,, I think he means that thats when you will see wild animals infected with 'warbles' ,, they will have large lumps on their bodies [ I thought was tumors! when I spotted a wild squirle here with lumps] ,, its a 'fly' larvae thats growing under their skin ,, and when its mature it will eat a hole in the skin of the 'host' and drop out leaving a wound in the critters skin ,,

I've read posts where some people have found them on their caged rabbits ,, and its apparently easy to 'treat' ,, slightly lanceing the 'lump' / excize the worm and flush the wound and pack with antibotic ointment ,,


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## dlwelch (Aug 26, 2002)

KSALguy said:


> is this something that just simply COOKING the food wont kill off? alot of stuff is deadly or will make you sick but if you cook the meat right your perfectly safe


FYI:

http://www.chieftain.com/metro/1152347552/4



> Tularemia spreads in Pueblo area
> By MARGIE WOOD
> THE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN
> 
> ...



Centers for Disease Control: http://www.cdc.gov


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## Gill (Jun 6, 2006)

Is it safe to put down insect repellant granules or something to kill the ticks that will be where my rabbits are going? How do you keep the ticks, flies ect. off the rabbits? They will be in cages, in a roofed pole barn, but no sides as yet. I had thought of a fenced area where they could run while we cleaned their cages, but we have tons of ticks this year. Can you use a frontline type of product on them?


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## Carrie C (Apr 7, 2005)

Don't use Frontline!
Tularmeria is rare, if a rabbit has a tick on it, it doesn't mean it has tularmeria.
I've been doing a lot of reasearch on "rabbit fever". Think about how many people eat wild and/or domestic rabbit in the US and how many ticks there are. Now take a look at the numbers: only about 200 cases are reported a year in the entire US! Reported, not confirmed. Here is a quote from the CDC: "Tularemia, often called rabbit fever, is usually acquired by handling wild rabbits (dead or alive) and eating imperfectly cooked contaminated meat. Though the disease is not usually lifethreatening, it is disabling and characterized by a high fever." ( http://www.cdc.gov/nasd/docs/d001501-d001600/d001502/d001502.html )
So, DO wear gloves, DO cook the meat, DON'T use Frontline especially on rabbits raised for food, and remember that it's panicking that got us NAIS.
Keep a cool head and use common sense. Happy Rabbit Raising!
~Carrie Corter


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## twohunnyz (Apr 27, 2006)

This question went around on another rabbit group I'm on and the consensus was that it has to do with "warbles", otherwise known as 'Fly Strike'. The description quoted below of how it happens is accurate, except to add that the flies prefer wet, damp or even just exposed skin. And it can/does/will affect domestic rabbits, as well as wild ones and squirrels. That is why fly control in and around the rabbitry is _so_ important.




Tucker said:


> Not only do you not hunt wild rabbit / squirles during the warm months because its breeding time ,,
> 
> :nerd: but to quote my dad ,, "its cause they are wormy when its hot "
> 
> ...


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## turtlehead (Jul 22, 2005)

We house our rabbits on the ground. Seems to me that DE would be a good thing to sprinkle around the rabbitry, to help control ticks and flies. Can anyone think of a reason DE would *not* be a good idea?


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## twohunnyz (Apr 27, 2006)

The Rabbit Medicine Chest does carry a DE type product and you can actually sprinkle it _on_ the rabbits food to get rid of internal critters, too. So, putting it _around_ the rabbitry definitely wouldn't be a problem. I think their website is www.rabbitmedicinechest.com. I will look as soon as I log out and if it is _different_, I will repost the _correct_ one. Otherwise the one above is it! HTH





turtlehead said:


> We house our rabbits on the ground. Seems to me that DE would be a good thing to sprinkle around the rabbitry, to help control ticks and flies. Can anyone think of a reason DE would *not* be a good idea?


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## turtlehead (Jul 22, 2005)

Didn't see your response until today, twohunnyz - thanks!


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