Outbreaks of rabbit hemorrhagic disease have occurred recently in young rabbits on farms on the Iberian Peninsula where rabbits were previously vaccinated. Investigation identified a rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus variant genetically related to apathogenic rabbit caliciviruses. Improved antivirus strategies are needed to slow the spread of this pathogen.

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The aim was to study relationships between morbidity, defined through prevalence of diseases of rabbit females, and BCS, and to assess the effect of several risk factors on both morbidity and BCS. Our study was based on individual examinations of 18,510 does in lactation on 103 farms. We evaluated BCS on a linear scale from 1 to 9, with 5 being the optimum. Prevalence of major diseases were 22.7%, 4.0%, and 6.4% for coryza, mastitis, and ulcerative pododermatitis, respectively. In addition, prevalence was 3.0% for diseases of minor presentation, including mange, which had a prevalence of 1.9%. The BCS of the R line (selected for growth) was 5.55 ± 0.14, whereas for the A line (selected for litter size) it was 4.40 ± 0.11. Females with more than 20 kindlings had on average a BCS 0.25 ± 0.07 units less than those in the 12th lactation (P = 0.0002). Optimal BCS 4.60 ± 0.11 was reached during the third lactation week. Sick females had a BCS of 0.6 ± 0.01 units less than healthy females. Females with a footrest had on average a BCS 0.19 ± 0.05 units greater than those without. The absence of footrests was an enabling risk factor for ulcerative pododermatitis, the prevalence of which increased by 53%. Ulcerative pododermatitis was associated (P = 0.045) with diet; females consuming a rich energy diet were prone to having this disorder; 1 SD increase in DE (0.32 MJ) determined an increase in ulcerative pododermatitis prevalence of 0.8 percentage points. Diet was not an enabling risk factor for the other diseases. The genetic type to which a female belongs is a predisposing risk factor of disease; P, V and H were also maternal lines, while S group was exclusively formed by maternal lines. With regard to coryza, the S group had the greatest prevalence (44.0%), followed by A, P, R (19.0 to 21.0%); the V line, selected for prolificacy, showed the least prevalence (12.0%). For the case of mastitis although significant (P < 0.05), the magnitude of the differences between disease prevalence was less; R line had a mastitis prevalence of 11.0% while the least prevalence was observed for V does (4.0%). Simultaneous evaluation of both BCS and morbidity on the rabbit farm is recommended for the right assessment of welfare conditions. In this study, the relationships between both variables have been shown, as well as how other intrinsic and extrinsic risk factors modulate these variables; and thus, these factors should be considered during a welfare assessment.

Simple SummaryMastitis has been a subject of interest on rabbit farms. To better understand various aspects of this disease, we evaluated the work done during 2001–2017, on 531 farms in Spain and Portugal. We measured the cases of mastitis on the days of visit, with the examination of lactating females. We found an average of 4% of mastitic does; they were mostly chronic forms, since females with acute mastitis often die in a few hours. Several factors affect the occurrence of mastitis. For example, rabbit lines have different susceptibilities. The number of batches per maternity barn also influences the occurrence of disease; therefore, a single batch is better, or the duo system, which consists of moving females near parity to a clean and disinfected room. In the last 200 visited farms, we found that injectable antimicrobials were often used for the mastitis control, in addition to the hygiene practices (for example, culling diseased does and avoiding their kits being fostered).AbstractIn this cross-sectional study, prevalence of clinical mastitis (PCM) and farm-specific risk factors were determined on 531 doe rabbit farms in Spain and Portugal, from January 2001 through March 2017. The information was obtained by carrying out 2367 visits and doing physical examinations of 144,455 lactating does, sorted in 2635 cohorts. Overall mean PCM was 4.05% (CI95% [3.87–4.22]), (minimum to maximum: 0–36.00% PCM). This study suggests that PCM was influenced by the variable number of batches (a batch was a group of does served the same day), per maternity barn (p < 0.0001). The duo system (does being moved to clean disinfected barns for parturition), was also an enabling risk factor for CM. The day of service or lactation stage also affected PCM. Lastly, there was an effect of the breeds or lines (p < 0.0001); mean PCM ranged between 1.29% and 7.09%. A subset of data obtained from 200 farms visited during January 2012–March 2017, was recorded to describe the use of antimicrobials against mastitis. Changes in host, husbandry, environment, and biosecurity practices, are highlighted to provide health and welfare benefits for breeding rabbits.

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Simple SummarySore hocks are a health and welfare problem in rabbits housed in cages with mesh floors. Footrests are used to prevent them. They occupy part of the mesh floor of the cage but allow droppings to fall and also protect the rabbit’s feet. In this study we evaluated the use of footrests on 664 commercial farms visited in Spain and Portugal, and the rates of sick animals during 2001–2012; the attention given by producers to animal care was evident as 28% of farms with footrests in 2001 increased to 75% in 2012.AbstractRabbits in conventional farms are housed in wire net cages with mesh floors to separate them from droppings. In time, lacerations appear on the legs of adult rabbits causing ulcerative pododermatitis or sore hocks, a severe health and welfare problem. Pain causes behavioral changes; productivity is reduced and the most seriously affected animals die or are culled. In this study we evaluated the attention producers have given to this problem and its prevention by installing footrests in cages. We made 2,331 visits to 664 commercial farms in Spain and Portugal between 2001 and 2012, and evaluated morbidity by examining 105,009 females and 10,722 males. The study highlights that the rate of farms with footrests increased from 27.8% in 2001 to 75.2% in 2012. Prevalence of sore hocks in does in 2001 was 11.4%, decreasing to 6.3% in 2012; prevention of ulcerative pododermatitis was associated (P < 0.001) with the presence of footrests. Overall, prevalence was 4.87 ± 0.26 on farms with footrests and 13.71 ± 0.32 without (P < 0.01).

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