What are the prevention and treatment methods for rabbit hemorrhagic septicemia?
The pathogen of rabbit "hemorrhagic septicemia" belongs to Pasteurella multocida. When the external environment changes, rearing and management are poor, and the rabbit's resistance weakens, the Pasteurella on the respiratory tract mucosa seizes the opportunity to become active and cause disease, with hemorrhagic septicemia in the body tissues, hence the name "hemorrhagic septicemia" disease, abbreviated as "hemorrhagic septicemia."
(1) Symptoms
1. Acute type: the affected rabbit suddenly falls to the ground and dies, with no clinical symptoms. But most affected rabbits show: listlessness, cessation of eating, difficulty breathing, body temperature rising above 41°C, serous discharge flowing from the nasal cavity, sometimes diarrhea, shivering and spasms, and the course of disease generally leads to death in 3-5 hours and 12-24 hours.
2. Subacute type: the affected rabbit has difficulty breathing, often sneezes and coughs, mucous and purulent nasal discharge flows from the nasal cavity, rales can be heard in the lung area, joints swell, conjunctivitis occurs, and death follows diarrhea.
3. Chronic type: catarrhal inflammation appears in the mucosa of the upper respiratory tract of the affected rabbit, mucous, serous and purulent discharge flows from the nasal cavity, sneezing and coughing occur, and the rabbit often uses its front paws to scratch and wipe its nose, thereby transmitting the pathogen to the ears, eyes and scratched skin, causing conjunctivitis, keratitis, otitis media and wound suppuration. If not treated seriously and promptly, it will ultimately lead to malnutrition, emaciation and death.
(2) Preventive measures
1. Strengthen scientific rearing and management of the rabbit flock, conscientiously do a good job of environmental sanitation, improve the body's constitution, enhance disease resistance, and pay special attention to preventing colds caused by climate change and the invasion and harm of parasitic diseases.
2. The feces, filth and garbage removed from the rabbit house must be treated by piling and composting for thorough decomposition and fermentation, with strict disinfection and regular quarantine.
3. For newly introduced rabbits, the epidemic prevention principle of isolated observation and rearing for 15 days must be adhered to, and only those confirmed healthy and disease-free may be admitted for scientific rearing.
4. For rabbits suffering from particularly severe disease, they must be decisively and promptly culled, and the carcass and other filth must be arranged for disinfection treatment at the bottom.
5. It is especially important that "rabbit pasteurella vaccine" preventive injection must be carried out every year to breed a healthy rabbit flock.
(3) Treatment methods
1. For affected rabbits of fine breeds with high value, subcutaneously inject "anti-hemorrhagic septicemia serum" at 4-5 ml per kg of body weight, and inject once more 8-10 hours after the first injection; for the remaining breeding rabbits, subcutaneously inject "anti-hemorrhagic septicemia serum" at 2-3 ml per kg of body weight to form a temporary herd immunity effect.
2. Use penicillin or streptomycin containing 20,000-30,000 units per ml to instill into the nose of affected rabbits, 3-5 drops per rabbit each time, 3-4 times daily, for 5-7 consecutive days.
3. Use 1% ephedrine solution and chloramphenicol eye drops to instill into the nose at the same time, 3-4 drops of each per time, 3-4 times per rabbit daily, and at the same time orally administer sulfamerazine or sulfadimidine at 0.1 g per kg of body weight, twice daily.
4. For valuable breeding rabbits suffering from this disease, intramuscular injection of penicillin at 10,000-20,000 units and streptomycin sulfate at 5,000-10,000 units per kg of body weight can be used at the same time, twice daily, for 3-5 consecutive days.
5. For affected rabbits with a relatively long course of disease, use sulfaquinoxaline calculated at 225 g added per ton of feed, mix evenly and feed 3 times daily.
6. Traditional Chinese medicine treatment formula: per kg of body weight, use 5 g honeysuckle, 3 g chrysanthemum, 1.5 g coptis, 2 g phellodendron, 1.5 g scutellaria, 8 g dandelion, and 1.5 g red peony, boil together into 500-1000 ml of decoction, divide into 10 portions and mix into a small amount of concentrated feed to feed.