Rabbit hunting and Tularemia

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Pinelands

New member
Im thinking of going rabbit hunting but what ive read about Tularemia kinda scares me.

Is this risk blown way out of proportion, or is it as common as they make it sound?

Has anyone here actually caught the disease or known someone who has?
 
Is this risk blown way out of proportion
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I feel that it has been.

is it as common as they make it sound?
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Not as common as you might think but always a possibility.

You can reduce exposure by timing and protection. We always wait for the second frost before we hunt them. We don't wear gloves but will not come into contact, with any blood, if we have any open cuts. You won't get it by skinning a rabbit. As Double Naught has stated; check the liver and look for small whitish spots. We always take wash water or hand wipes with us or just clean our hands with snow. The risk is minimal. Another point is to observe the movement or nature of the rabbit. If it's lathargic or doesn't move well, it's probably sick. Once pushed one over on it's side with a push of my boot. Give these a chance to get better. I would not let this remote possibilty stop me from hunting rabbit. Personally, have only known one person that got sick. .... :barf:

Be Safe !!!
 
Thanks for the replies.

We always wait for the second frost before we hunt them.
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I read somewhere that supposedly if you wait until Jan/Feb (in the northeast) it is safe because the tularemia carrying ticks are all gone...and if a rabbit was recently infected, it would be dead by then.

Is this true? Or is it possible to still get infected in the winter?
 
Google "tularemia" and learn lots more.

Frequency
United States
A few hundred cases of tularemia are reported annually. Many cases are probably undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, or unreported. Tularemia has been reported in all states except Hawaii. Most reported cases occur in Arkansas, Tennessee, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Utah, and Missouri.

In the past, tularemia infections reportedly occurred more frequently during the cold-weather months (eg, rabbit-associated disease); however, recently, tularemia has been reported more frequently during warm-weather months (eg, tick-associated disease).
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http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/230923-overview

Basically, overly sick rabbits tend to die off with hard freezes as do many of the ticks and mites. The spread amongst rabbits slows or ceases without the ticks and mights and some of the sick rabbits die. So your chance of getting an infested rabbit is less.

From the above reference...
It mimics the black plague in how it infects you. What fun...open pustulating, oozing sores.

Tularemia is a BACTERIA, not a worm. You can contract it simply by touching, and most especially skinning a rabbit.
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Don't be so sure.
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Well, as the "Progressives" would say; I'll have to recalibrate my words.
You usually won't get it by skinning a rabbit.

Now I'll have to watch out for the fleas !!! ... :eek:


Be Safe !!!
 
What's sad, is the plague is now endemic here in Utah, but I fear Tularemia even more.

In general, avoid touching the animal with unprotected hands (especially if you have open wounds). Don't try to save the skin during warmer months, unless you have a good plan to quickly kill every parasite on it.

Everything else I would add has already been stated here.
 
What's sad, is the plague is now endemic here in Utah...
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Plague was global except for Australia by 1910 and came to the US around 1900 to the west coast. It has probably been in Utah since long before you were born.

Where there are less than 200 cases per year of tularemia in the US, there are an average of 13 per year of plague in the US western states.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/plague/facts.htm

Both can be treated, but plague has a higher mortality rate. Utah is not nearly as bad off as Arizona and New Mexico.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/plague/plagwest.htm
 
Plague was global except for Australia by 1910 and came to the US around 1900 to the west coast. It has probably been in Utah since long before you were born.
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I understand your point, and fully agree.

My point, though, was that we actually get warnings broadcast and printed every year. We have many water sources that test positive for active plague every year. (Don't jump on me over the terms or plauge in a "water source", please. This is how the DNR/State describes it, and warns the public.)

And if you do much hunting in Utah's West Desert, you'll see the plague first hand. It hits the animals pretty hard, with visible symptoms.
 
with visible symptoms.
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We've taken to calling the "visible symptoms" Lurbs. Many of the small game animals we come across have what look like oversize (like gumball size) skeeter bites on them. No idea exactly what they are, but as Frankenmauser stated, the local water sources are plague ridden, and there are chemical weapons stored nearby..............but if we stay upwind we are ok.....right? :)
 
we were always told never eat rabbit till after the firts frost.

growing up, bunny was a major source of meat for us. never wore gloves or knew anybody to get sick from it.
 
I had a dose of it about 60 years ago. Got it from being bitten by a squirrel. Symptoms showed up in less than 24 hours. High fever was the worst of them and I was one sick kid. Old country doctor shot me up with some antibiotic and in a couple of days I was back to normal. Only aftereffect is that I now make sure squirrels are dead before picking them up. Very few cases even back then.
 
WEAR GLOVES when cleaning. My dad had it in the 1940's and it darn near killed him. They fed him streptomyacin like it was candy. We have better antibiotics today but, it is still no fun. I wear nitrile gloves when cleaning any game as a precaution. Your buddies may laugh, but you can visit them in the hospital.
 
we were always told never eat rabbit till after the firts frost.
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I have followed that advice as well.

Any bunnies we shoot in the summer get left for the 'yotes.

In cold weather, they go home and make some good dinners.
 
To those shooting them with an '06, it is leagal, but no more ethical than purposly leaving a deer carcass rot. Eatin' critters is food, and you don't waste food. Gophers are for red mist!

Those shooting them in the summer run the risk of killing a female and condemning a litter of babies to slow, painful starvation. Poor conservation at best, heartless cruelty at worst.
 
To those shooting them with an '06, it is leagal, but no more ethical than purposly leaving a deer carcass rot. Eatin' critters is food, and you don't waste food. Gophers are for red mist!
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Its unethical if you wound them..........a one shot kill with no suffering isn't unethical to me. I shoot them with .358, .270, 7.62X54R, .22 Hornet, .22LR, .44 Mag, .41 Mag, .357 Mag, .38 Special, 9mm, and .45 Auto.

Are people trapping fur-bearers unethical if they don't take thier muskrats, badger, or coyotes home and cook them up for dinner? They do have meat on thier bones, just like the jack rabbits I shoot (and leave) out in the desert.
 
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