Rabbit Haemorrhagic Disease
Learn what the condition is, how it may be detected early, how it is treated or managed, and which breeds or species are linked to it.
Condition snapshot
A concise guide to the condition’s pattern, detection, management and urgency.
Emergency presentation is possibleSudden death or compatible disease in any rabbit requires immediate veterinary and biosecurity advice.
Limit spread while seeking adviceSeparate affected animals when practical and obtain veterinary guidance on contacts, cleaning and normal mixing.
This snapshot is a general guide, not a diagnosis or treatment plan. New, severe or worsening signs require veterinary assessment.
About the condition
Rabbit haemorrhagic disease is caused by caliciviruses including RHDV variants present in Australia. The virus is environmentally resistant and can spread through direct contact, insects, contaminated footwear, feed, equipment and wild rabbits.
Disease may cause sudden death with few signs or fever, lethargy, breathing difficulty, neurological signs, jaundice and bleeding. Incubating rabbits can appear normal.
Rabbit haemorrhagic disease is an acute caliciviral hepatitis caused by RHDV1 and RHDV2 variants. Both domestic and wild European rabbits are susceptible, and RHDV2 is a major current Australian threat. Virus spreads directly and on insects, carcasses, footwear, hay, vegetables, cages and hands; it persists in organic material and can enter an indoor household without rabbit-to-rabbit contact. Death may occur before signs are seen. Fever, lethargy, breathing difficulty, neurologic change, jaundice or bleeding can precede collapse, but absence of external haemorrhage does not exclude disease. Young-age susceptibility and vaccine coverage differ by strain. A sudden death is a biosecurity event as well as an individual clinical loss because contaminated material can expose other rabbits. The disease does not infect people, but human movement readily carries virus between environments.
The liver and clotting system can fail before external bleeding is visible, so a rabbit found dead without haemorrhage remains compatible with disease. RHDV2 affects age groups differently from classic RHDV1 and is the predominant contemporary Australian strain. Insects and contaminated organic material allow virus to bypass the apparent protection of indoor housing. A single loss can therefore signal risk to rabbits that never shared direct contact. Human illness does not result from RHDV, but people readily move viable contamination between properties and enclosures. Because disease can move through insects and fomites, protection is a property-level process rather than a decision made only when a new rabbit arrives.
Screening & Early Detection
Discuss current Australian vaccination recommendations with a rabbit veterinarian, use insect control, avoid forage contaminated by wild rabbits and disinfect footwear and equipment.
Diagnosis requires specific laboratory testing, often after death, and suspected outbreaks may have reporting or biosecurity implications. Other causes of sudden death must be excluded. Confirm the current vaccination product, date, age at vaccination and veterinary schedule rather than recording “vaccinated” alone. Ask about wild-rabbit activity, insect exposure, outdoor forage, shows, new rabbits and shared equipment. Compatible illness or sudden death requires immediate isolation and laboratory PCR on appropriate blood or tissue, usually coordinated after death. Notify the veterinarian before arrival so clinic exposure can be controlled. Examine remaining rabbits remotely or with dedicated equipment and record individual temperatures, appetite and vaccination status while official or laboratory advice is obtained.
Sudden death or compatible disease in any rabbit requires immediate veterinary and biosecurity advice. Keep vaccine product, batch date and schedule with each rabbit's record because “vaccinated” does not describe strain coverage or timing. Following sudden death, stop movement and contact the veterinarian before transporting a carcass or companion. Trace forage, insects, footwear, visitors and shared equipment while diagnostic sampling is arranged.
Treatment & Management
Treatment is supportive and often unsuccessful. Exposed rabbits require strict isolation, veterinary advice and decontamination because the virus persists in the environment.
There is no specific curative antiviral therapy. Isolate the rabbit and provide intensive oxygen, fluids, analgesia, warmth and nutritional support when treatment is attempted, recognising that rapid hepatic failure and clotting disorder make survival uncommon in severe disease. Do not move exposed rabbits, carcasses, bedding or equipment without veterinary biosecurity direction. Clean away organic material before an effective virucidal protocol and control insects. In Australia, vaccination planning should specifically address RHDV1 and RHDV2 using currently available products and local veterinary guidance; schedules can change with age, product and outbreak risk. Quarantine additions and avoid forage or footwear contaminated by wild rabbits even when resident rabbits are vaccinated.
A clinically affected rabbit requires isolation and intensive supportive care, but rapid hepatic and coagulation failure makes prognosis poor. Biosecurity instructions govern carcasses, bedding and equipment; routine household cleaning may not inactivate virus in organic material. Protection of remaining rabbits uses current RHDV1/RHDV2 vaccination advice alongside insect and fomite control.
Breeds or species affected
Mini Lop
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Dwarf Lop
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Netherland Dwarf
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Dutch Rabbit
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Mini Rex
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Standard Rex
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English Spot
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Flemish Giant
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New Zealand White
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English Angora
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