Game Commission warns of Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease after 2 positive tests in Fayette County
HARRISBURG (KDKA) - The Pennsylvania Game Commission is warning the public about Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease after two rabbits from a facility in Fayette County tested positive for one of the viruses that causes the disease.
The agency said it's Pennsylvania's first case of Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus 2 in domestic rabbit populations.
RHDV2 is a highly pathogenic and contagious virus that has caused mass die-offs in wild hare and rabbit populations in several countries, the Game Commission said. It's already considered an endemic in some western states.
The agency said there's no specific treatment for RHD and it's often fatal, with die-offs of local populations potentially reaching 75 to 100%.
It doesn't pose any human health risk, but the Game Commission said multiple dead rabbits and hares could be a sign of other diseases, so people shouldn't touch or eat wildlife that appears sick or died from an unknown cause.
Anyone who sees two or more dead hares/rabbits at the same location with an unknown cause of death is asked to call 1-833-PGC-WILD or report it online.