If you are breeding rabbits, you must carefully monitor their health. Quite often, animals are affected by a disease like pasteurellosis in rabbits, the symptoms of which will be described in this article.
Disease description
Pasteurellosis - one of the most dangerous infectious diseases. Its pathogen is Pasteurella wand. The disease affects the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract. It is possible to notice the first signs of an illness in 5-10 hours after the sticks enter the body. They are poorly expressed, therefore, to determine the presence of the disease in the early stages is quite difficult.
Important! In order to prevent the spread of the disease and infection of rodents, all animals brought into the farm must spend at least 30 days in quarantine.
The probability of death in the disease is 15-75%, depending on the conditions of animals and the food they eat. The external manifestation of rabbit pasteurellosis is shown in the photo. 
With the defeat of the disease:
- diarrhea begins and bowel distention occurs;
- breathing becomes heavy, accompanied by wheezing;
- mucus is secreted from the nose and eyes;
- appetite worse;
- animal behavior is characterized by lethargy, indifference;
- body temperature rises to 41-42 degrees.
Infection with the disease can occur at any time of the year, striking rodents regardless of their age and breed. Juveniles are more susceptible.
Read also about such a dangerous disease of rabbits as coccidiosis, and its treatment with Solicox and Baycox.
Causes of
As mentioned above, infection occurs when Pasteurella sticks enter the body of an animal. Infection can spread cattle, pigs, sheep, chickens, geese and other animals. Also a person can be a distributor - the wand is transferred on clothes and shoes, with infected feed, inventory tools and equipment.
Reproduction in the body of Pasteurella occurs fairly quickly, they are penetrated into the lymphatic and circulatory systems, which leads to the occurrence of septicemia. Toxic products damage the vascular walls, hemorrhagic diathesis develops, swelling is observed.
Did you know? The longest ears belong to the rabbit Nipper's Geronimo, their length is 79.06 cm. Thanks to the large size of the ears, he fell into the Guinness Book of Records.
Unfortunately, it is quite problematic to establish the exact cause of the disease, therefore it is recommended to regularly inspect animals and carry out preventive measures. 
Symptoms and course of the disease
There are two forms in which pasteurellosis usually occurs. Consider them in more detail.
Sharp
Most often the acute stage is observed in the beginning of the epizootic. During this period, rodents are usually subjected to stress, they are influenced by various adverse factors: unexpected and long-term transportation, changes in the conditions of care, regrouping.
First of all, body temperature rises to 41 degrees, the animal refuses to eat, becomes weak, symptoms of upper respiratory tract lesions appear, rabbits sneeze, and there is a runny nose. Often you can notice rapid and difficult breathing in animals. After a time, the gastrointestinal tract is damaged, diarrhea begins The weakening of rodents is carried out rather quickly, and after 1-2 days their death occurs.
We advise you to get acquainted with different breeds of rabbits: meat, ornamental, giants (white giant, gray giant), Californian, Angora, black-brown, butterfly, rizen, flandr, Soviet chinchilla.
Chronic
At first, animals develop symptoms similar to those of rhinitis, conjunctivitis, and keratoconjunctivitis. There may also be diarrhea. Over time, fibrous and fibrous-purulent pleuropneumonia develops.
If rodents are kept in adverse conditions or are part of a dysfunctional herd, pneumonia spreads very quickly and leads to the death of all animals. In the subcutaneous tissue of some rabbits, it is sometimes possible to detect purulent abscesses, the opening of which occurs after 1-3 months. 
Diagnosis of the disease
The diagnosis is made on the basis of clinical studies, as well as after opening the dead animals. The epizootic situation in the region is also carefully studied, the diagnosis is confirmed with the help of bacteriological studies of material taken from dead animals.
For the treatment of rabbits from various diseases, such drugs as Tromeksin, Enrofloxacin, Enroxil, Nitox 200, Loseval, Baytril, Biovit-80 are used.
Is it possible to cure rabbits
If you start treatment in time, there is every chance to cure pets. However, the causative agent (wand) will still remain in the body, and the disease may flare up again.
Important! In order to prevent the spread of the disease from already dead animals, they should not just be buried, but burned, since simple burial does not destroy the bacillus that causes the disease.For treatment, antibiotics and sulfonamides are used, such as:
- norsulfazol;
- neomycin;
- tetracycline;
- biomitsin;
- sulfadimezin;
- chloramphenicol;
- biomitsin.
The course of treatment with these drugs is 3-4 days, they must be administered intramuscularly twice a day. 
If there is a chronic form of the disease, it is necessary to adhere to the following scheme: for the first three days to inject the sulfonamides, then 3 days of antibiotics and then again the sulfonamides. The general course of treatment is approximately 9-10 days.
Today, the "extract formol vaccine" is very common, but it can only be used for treating baby rabbits whose age is more than 1.5 months. For the treatment of animals whose age is 20-40 days, use serum, which is administered every 7 days at the rate of 4 ml per 1 kg of rabbit weight.
When pasteurellosis occurs in rabbits, it is necessary to immediately treat it, since the disease proceeds rather quickly and it is not possible to save the animals.
Treatment of rodents with severe damage is usually not carried out - they are killed and discarded so that the infection does not spread further.
Preventive measures
To prevent the spread of the disease, it is worth the following preventive measures:
- Inhibit infected rabbits into quarantine and immediately treat them;
- as soon as possible to identify what has become a source of infection, to carry out its elimination;
- clean and disinfect cells, aviaries, water bowls and adjacent areas. Releasing animals into their cages is possible only 2 weeks after treatment.
Disinfection of animal housing is carried out by processing:- 1% formalin solution;
- 3% solution of lysol;
- 3% carbolic solution;
- 2% solution of caustic soda.
These funds must be mixed in the same container and treated with a solution of the cage and other rooms where there are rabbits.
Did you know? The lifespan of rabbits in their natural environment is about 10 years. However, the oldest rabbit died at the age of 19.
With the help of boiling water is carried out processing feeders, drinking bowls, manure scrapers and other equipment. Since Pasteurella can be present in the manure, it is usually buried. 
An obligatory stage of preventive measures is the use of rabbit pasteurellosis vaccine. It begins to be used immediately, as rodents reach one month of age. Vaccination of adults is carried out 2 times a year. Today there are a huge number of vaccination schemes, so before applying you should carefully read the instructions. The most common and effective are such drugs:
- "Pasorin-Ol";
- "Pestorin Mormix";
- "Formolvaccine".
Pasteurellosis is a rather serious disease, the probability of death after which is very high. With proper, careful care, as well as compliance with the rules of antiseptics and timely vaccination, you can prevent the death of animals.
