During prolonged droughts, rabies cases in the wild (raccoons, skunks, foxes, bats etc.) and in feral cats and dogs is known to increase compared to prior years. As the holiday weekend ensues, and many are going to campgrounds and parks and visiting friends out of town, be alert to the presence of rabies in multiple counties in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and take precautions to not be bitten. If a wild animal actively chases you, do not let the animal bite you.

Livestock can and do get rabies. Cases of reports in cattle have occurred in Pennsylvania in 2022. In their March report, two cows and a horse tested positive for rabies in the state. In the last eleven years, twelve horses have tested positive for rabies in New Jersey.

2022 NJ reported rabies cases by counties link: https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/documents/rabies_stats/rabcases2022.pdf

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/statistics/rabies-stats/

2022 PA reported rabies cases by counties. This map is from March 2022. Because in the course of a month, there has probably been a positve report of rabies in every county in Pennsylvania, assume rabies is present (still circulating in wild animals) in the county in September of 2022.  https://www.agriculture.pa.gov/Animals/AHDServices/diseases/Pages/Rabies.aspx

If you are bitten by any wild animal or feral animal or even a domesticated pet or livestock, it is recommended that you:

• Report to the local police so they are aware.
• If a wild or feral animal, also report to Game-wildlife regional office.
• Go to the hospital and fill out a public health notification form. This form notifies the state public health office, and a nurse will call you to advise you of the rabies monitoring period and treatment protocol.
• Notify your local doctor as soon as possible.
• Also, call your state reporting number so that the record of the attack is logged in their database.

Pennsylvania hotline: (717) 772-2852 / ra-ahds@pa.gov

New Jersey hotline: Contact the NJ Public Health and Environmental Laboratories, Rabies Laboratory: via email: rabies.PHEL@doh.nj.gov or. via telephone: (609) 530-8416, 671-6418 or 671-641.

Pennsylvania has detected a case of Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus (RHDV) case in domestic rabbits in Western Pa. This follows on the heels of a New Jersey detection in March of 2022. RHDV has been evolving and spreading in pet rabbits since cases were first detected in North America in 2000.

Because this is an emerging disease, it is possible we can limit widespread infection in domestic and wild rabbits by practicing biosecurity measures at home and not releasing or disposing of domestic rabbits into the wild.

Example Timeline of RHDV1 Strain Detections in North America | and evolution into RHDV2 Strain

• 2000 (Iowa)
• 2001 (Utah, Illinois, New York)
• 2005 (Indiana)
• 2008 (Maryland)
• 2010 (Minnesota)
• 2016 (Quebec, Canada) detection of the more contagious RHDV2 strain*
• 2018 (Ohio) detection of the more contagious RHDV2 strain*
• 2018 (Pennsylvania)
• 2019 (Vancouver, Canada) detection of a different strain of the contagious RHDV2 strain*
• 2019 (Washington) detection of the more contagious RHDV2 strain*
• USDA APHIS notice on 2019 outbreak link is here
• In recent Canadian outbreaks of RHDV2, the death rate was close to 90%.
• 2020 Outbreak of (RHDV2) associated disease occurred in the southwestern United States following its first detection in New Mexico in March
• 2020 (New York City, 13 cases linked to a veterinary hospital) RHDV2 strains*
• 2022 (New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, Colorado, California, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, and Oregon)
• 2022 (New Jersey)

* This new strain is able to infect a wider variety of rabbit species including wild rabbits.

If you notice these symptoms in rabbits, isolate them and contact your veterinarian and your state’s Division of Animal Health. If you see dead wild rabbits that lack explanation, contact your state Game and Wildlife Division:

• Rabbits die suddenly without symptoms
• Rabbits have a fever
• Rabbits are uncoordinated, excessively excited, have convulsions, paddling, or paralysis
• Rabbits have difficulty breathing just before death
• Rabbits have bloody discharge from nose or stools
• Rabbits have eye hemorraghes

To protect the wild rabbit population, do not release domestic rabbits into the wild and do not dispose of dead rabbits in the wild.

For more information about measures in New Jersey see the state press release: https://www.nj.gov/agriculture/news/press/2022/approved/press220513.html

If you are traveling between or through states, be aware of the interstate-intrastate quarantine regarding domestic rabbit movements in Pennsylvania. The PA “Interstate and International Order of Quarantine is applicable to all States, Commonwealths and territories of the United States of America and any foreign country in which the dangerous transmissible disease RHD exists or there is a reasonable suspicion it exists.”

New Jersey residence who suspect RHDV2, should alert the NJDA, Division of Animal Health at 609-671-6400. The 24-hour number to report a foreign animal disease to USDA APHIS VS Area Veterinarian in Charge is 866-536-7593.

Biosecurity measures rabbit owners can take regarding Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease can be found at:

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/animal_health/fs-rhdv2.pdf

USDA APHIS Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Resources 

USDA (RHDV) Cleaning Guidance July 2020 

National Assembly of State Animal Health Officials (NASAHO) – RHDV Biosecurity Guidance 

NASAHO – RHDV Shows and Exhibitions Guidance