Lamalle A, Haverson VA, Hughes K. Renal pathology in wild European rabbits.
Vet Rec 2023;
193:e2948. [PMID:
37095703 DOI:
10.1002/vetr.2948]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Revised: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
There is a relative paucity of data examining the prevalence of renal pathology in wild rabbits.
METHODS
Sixty-two wild rabbits that had been shot for population control in Cambridgeshire, UK, underwent postmortem examination, including macroscopic and microscopic renal assessment.
RESULTS
The majority (82%) of the animals had macroscopically and microscopically normal kidneys. One animal (1.6%) had severe perirenal abscessation. Pasteurella spp. was isolated from this lesion. Ten rabbits (16%) had microscopic renal pathology comprising minimal to mild renal inflammation or fibrosis. No Encephalitozoon cuniculi organisms were detected histologically.
LIMITATIONS
The sample population was composed of shot rabbits, so the probability of detecting moribund individuals was reduced. Extrapolation of these data to the wider UK wild rabbit population may be limited as rabbits were shot at two sites within a 3 km radius of each other.
CONCLUSION
Renal pathology is rare in the population examined.
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