The deadly Rabbit Haemorrhagic Disease (RHD) outbreak has reached KwaZulu-Natal after a confirmed case in the Midlands.
A wild hare, which was found in the rural town of Rosetta, in the KZN Midlands, was confirmed by the state veterinary services in Allerton, Pietermaritzburg, to have tested positive for RHD on Monday.
A resident reported to Valley Vet that she had found the wild hare carcass within her boundary on November 13 with no visible injuries.
“In our area we have rabbits that are taken by birds or jackals, but they usually have some form of injury or bite on them. She has a few of these rabbit hare colonies that come and visit her in the afternoon, but she found this one dead with no visible cause,” said Dr Thashia Reddy, Valley Vet veterinarian.
“We phoned Allerton, which is where our state veterinary services is, and reported it. We sent it down to them, they did the test, and about 10 days later they confirmed that it tested positive for this disease.”
Dr Themba Sikhakhane, KZN agriculture and rural development department state veterinarian, confirmed that there was another case of RHD reported in Vryheid before this one.
“I only get a disease report at the end of the month, so I cannot confirm at this point, but there was another one reported around Vryheid. A small rabbit farmer reported a couple of deaths so I don’t think this was the first case.”
The first detection of the virus in South Africa was November 2022, in the Northern Cape before spreading to the Western Cape. It has since spread to the Free State and Gauteng.
I would assume it was introduced like how Covid-19 came to us: you see these things in other countries and all of a sudden they rock up on your shores. Something might have slipped through the cracks ...
— Dr Thashia Reddy, Valley Vet veterinarian
Before then, the virus had never been found in South Africa, and there are still question marks as to how it was introduced to the country since the importation of rabbits and hares is prohibited.
Reddy said the spread of this disease to the country was being investigated since the animal health staff are well managed with strict guidelines and schedules around moving animals.
“I would assume it was introduced like how Covid-19 came to us: you see these things in other countries and all of a sudden they rock up on your shores. Something might have slipped through the cracks ...”
Reddy said many people have come out to say they have also encountered dead hares since she made the community aware of this case through a post on the Valley Vet Facebook page.
She called for more education around the disease for rabbit breeders and the public so they can be the eyes on the ground.
“If this lady had never said anything we would never have known. We’re just veterinarians, we can’t be everywhere. We need the public to be on the lookout for our wild and indigenous hares that are endangered. It would be sad to lose our entire population to something like this.”
Reddy said the virus manifests itself within one to three days after infection. Animals may show no clinical signs of the disease and die suddenly.
It may be transmitted through oral, nasal, conjunctival and parenteral means, as blood-feeding insects have also been shown to be efficient mechanical vectors.
It may be through direct contact with an infected animal or indirectly by means of fomites, contaminated food, bedding, water, clothing, cages and equipment.
In the field, carcasses of RHD rabbits may be a major source for spreading since the virus seems to be highly resistant and stable when exposed to harsh environmental conditions.
There is no vaccine for the disease, and none of the local hares and rabbits has any immunity to it.
Sikhakhane urged rabbit farmers to employ strong biosecurity measures to try to prevent its spread.
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