Todayโs path rounds are on ๐ฃ๐๐๐ค๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ฌ!
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
๐๐๐๐ค๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ฌ are, of course, not real. However, there is a viral disease called ๐๐ก๐จ๐ฉ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ฏ๐ข๐ซ๐ฎ๐ฌ that can make rabbits look an awful lot like they have antlers! It is believed that this disease is the origin of the jackalope myth.
๐๐ก๐จ ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
We see this disease in rabbits, particularly wild species.
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
This virus is believed to be spread by contact between rabbits, although the exact ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ (mechanism of disease) is not clear. The virus may also be spread through biting insects like ticks or mosquitoes.
๐๐ก๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฆ?
Shope papillomavirus is related to other papillomaviruses, which are known for causing wart-like masses. With this particular virus, the โwartsโ are actually large masses of ๐ค๐๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง, the material that makes up fingernails and hair. These masses continue to grow and produce more and more keratin, resulting in a solid horn-like growth. Usually these masses occur on the face, resulting in the legend of the horned rabbit!
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐ข๐๐ ๐ง๐จ๐ฌ๐๐?
Diagnosis is typically based on observing the animal, as not many things cause these horn-like growths! The presence of the virus can be confirmed through detecting the virusโ DNA directly.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐๐?
Thankfully, the immune system will eventually recognize the virus and remove the tumours, meaning that treatment is not usually needed in most cases. In the mean time, the horns typically do not bother the rabbit, unless they interfere with eating and drinking. In some cases, surgical removal of the horns may be needed to maintain quality of life.
๐๐ก๐จ๐ญ๐จ๐ฌ
1-5) Rabbits with horns!
๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐๐ฌ
Terio, KA, McAloose, D, St. Leger, J. Pathology of Wildlife and Zoo Animals. 2018.
Photo 1 ยฉย Wikimedia Commons contributor WD45 licensed under CC 2.0 Generic.
Photos 2-4 Noahโs Arkive contributors King, Borkowski, Doster licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
