Rabbit Schmorl Disease

Rabbit Schmorl disease is caused by a bacteria (Fusiformis neeroplzorus)which can almost always be found on the skin of the rabbit.It only causes harm however, when it enters the body throughsome wound. When this happens two forms of the disease mayoccur. The first is a skin infection, which starts on the head,particularly the lips. The part becomes discoloured andulcerated, the skin of the affected area dying. The secondform of the disease consists of thick-walled abscesses containingyellow pus, which are extremely painful to the rabbit whentouched. 'These abscesses form in the skin or in the internalorgans, and may reach the size of a golf ball. The abscessescan be distinguished from cysts in that they are hot and causepain when touched, as opposed to cysts which do not feel hotand whirls cause no pain. A frequent complication with thisdisease is pneumonia. With both forms the animal may have difficulty in eating and breathing and if the head is affectedthe animal usually dies within three weeks.

Prevention consists in ensuring that wounds are cleansedproperly. Treatment is difficult in the skin type of infectionbut surgical removal of the abscess can be attempted by askilled person in the case of valuable animals.