This Q + A is from the All Experts Site
Expert: Dana Krempels, Ph.D.
Date: 3/10/2004
Subject: Pasteurella
Question
I was wondering if you knew of any tests that could be done to see if a rabbit has pasturella. There is no snot, no symptoms to sample for a culture. See, we have separate groups of rabbits, and we'd like to bond them, but fear that one group might have pasturella (they're domestic rescues from the wild). Like I already said, there are no symptoms that they do, except they have a wet nose. Are wet noses a sign? If not, do you know why my bunnies have them? It's not white, it's clear.
Thanks
Alexandra and Bunns
Answer
Dear Alexandra,
Even if the new bunnies do have Pasteurella, this bacterium will not necessarily be transmitted to anyone else. We have had *many* bunnies who tested positive for Pasteurella (via culture and sensitivity testing, which is explained here:
www.bio.miami.edu/hare/culture.html), and not one ever had an uninfected companion contract the microorganism. Pasteurella is really quite a delicate beast, and many experienced vets now suspect that a rabbit will contract it in infancy, or not at all. Transmission is suspected to occur via contact with infected bodily fluids (snot, saliva, etc.), but a healthy adult rabbit exposed to such fomites usually isn't all that susceptible. The immune system handles it.
And some rabbits with Pasteurella never show any serious symptoms. It's just not the horrible demon it's made out to be: it's simply a bacterium that's not uncommon in rabbits, and in some immunocompromised individuals, it can cause disease that may manifest as an abscess, an upper respiratory infection, or even an acute systemic infection.
But it is quite treatable, though the specific rabbit-safe antibiotic that would be best to use can be determined only via culture and sensitivity testing.
Even if there is no pus, and the nasal discharge is clear, your vet can take a deep nasal culture and see if the bunnies are harboring any Pasteurella (see the article at the URL above). If they are, it's really not a big deal. But the only way to know is via culture and sensitivity testing.
I hope this helps. Please write back if you have any other questions.
Dana (Krempels)
So it looks as though the thinking is that a Bun is most likely to contract Pasteurella at birth. But if a healthy adult Bun comes into contact with it his/her immune system should cope with it.
Stress can bring the symptoms of 'Snuffles' out
Janex