May 2020 testing summary

Rabbit calicivirus was detected in WA, VIC, TAS, and NSW for samples collected mostly in April and May*.

RHDV2 continues to be the dominant variant detected, however, RHDV1 was detected in one case in Victoria in March and K5 was detected in two cases in WA in April, highlighting the importance of keeping RHDV1 vaccinations up to date in domestic and breeding rabbits.

50% of samples submitted for testing were negative for calicivirus. Please continue to submit samples from any suspicious rabbit deaths. The only way to diagnose rabbit calicivirus infection and to determine the exact virus strain is through testing.

 

 

* Results are based on testing performed during this time. This may not reflect samples collected in this time period. We frequently come across delays (sometimes many months) between sample collection and submission, especially for wild rabbit samples.