Valley Fever?

[babybella]

Does anyone know if rabbits are susceptible to valley fever? Bella loves to dig in the backyard and I routinely fill in the holes before they get too big, but a couple of days ago, I found a rather deep one that she had hidden. Valley fever is rampant in our area, and it’s often contracted by breathing spores released from dirt that hasn’t been turned over in a long time. So I’m just wondering what symptoms I should watch for, if that’s a risk for rabbits. I know it’s a long shot that anyone here would have experience with it, but google gave me nothing so I figured it’s worth a try Thanks!

[LBJ10]

It appears as though this fungus can infect any mammal. That being said, I wouldn’t worry too much. There isn’t much information about rabbits, but there is when it comes to humans, dogs, cats, etc. Most individuals that become infected are asymtomatic (as much as 60%). So my guess is that it is probably similar for rabbits. Treatment is mostly supportive therapy. The symptom that worries me is the skin lesions/abscesses.

PetMD has the symptoms for dogs:

Fever
Lethargy
Lameness
Coughing (can be either dry and harsh, or moist)
Difficulty breathing
Bone swelling/joint enlargement
Extreme weight loss with muscle wasting
Enlarged lymph nodes (lymphadenitis)
Skin ulcers and draining sores
Inflammation of the iris and other front parts of the eye
Inflammation of the cornea

For cats:

• Extreme weight loss and muscle wasting
• Draining skin lesions
• Difficulty breathing
• Lameness
• Inflammation of the iris and other areas in the front part of the eye.

 

This infection is less common in cats, and the spread of the infection tends to behave somewhat differently than with other animals. Cats typically do not show the same symptoms that dogs do, and may even remain asymptomatic until the infection has spread significantly. In cats, the deeper layers of skin tissue are more likely to be affected. Symptoms like masses, abscesses, and lesions with draining occur more often with cats.

To be safe, perhaps it would be better if you kept your bunny inside. If she likes to dig, you could make her an indoor dig box.

[babybella]

Thanks!! That’s really helpful information. I’ll keep a close eye on her.

As far as keeping her inside, I do move her in when it starts getting hot, but she hates it (and so does my family) so I try to let her stay outside as long as the weather permits. I just feel bad forcing her into a little exercise pen when she’s used to having free reign of the yard. So I’m thinking we will probably just fence off the dirt areas like we did with our gardens And I really like the idea of a dig box! Sounds a lot safer than what she’s doing now.

[debbie]

I keep all my bunnies indoors but have a big playpen with a sandpit with white clean sand. They love it they use the litter tray with hay in it to go to the toilet ?

[Author]

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