Sick Cottontail

Dave Snobelen · Post by **Dave Snobelen** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 8:59 pm

In my stand tonight and a cottontail came out to the edge of the corn field. His head is at a 90 degree angle and he's rolling over and over & hopping in tight circles and losing his balance all over the place, all in almost slow motion. he only went about 10 feet and rolled under the underbrush at the edge of the bush and I lost sight of it. Anybody ever seen anything like this before. I've been hunting 40+ years and have never seen the likes of this before
Dave

Red Label · Post by **Red Label** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 9:01 pm

distemper?

never seen a cottontail do that but I have seen some messed up groundhogs....before I messed them up even further.

Dave Snobelen · Post by **Dave Snobelen** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 9:29 pm

Never thought of distemper.

Didn't waste an arrow on him. Maybe I should have.
Dave

Adrian J Hare · Post by **Adrian J Hare** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 10:40 pm

Not sure if it is spelled right , but this is called Cockciteosous. It is much like distemper but also highly contagous. You should have killed it , as it is common in rabbits and can be passed through. It effects the nervous system and the control of balance. They tend to try and turn their head normal , but it keeps turning side ways and looking up. Most rabbit breaders will get rid of a rabbit as soon as they notice this action...BT

chris4570 · Post by **chris4570** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 9:10 pm

I could be many things. Bacterial infection, virus, parasites. But a rabbit like that will not go unnoticed by predators for long.mHe's probably already made it into someones belly.

Red Label · Post by **Red Label** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 9:20 pm

Adrian may be right, but the symptoms aren't reflected in this description of the disease in rabbits. I think penned pheasants & poultry can get it too:

Coccidiosis: Coccidiosis, caused by a protozoan (one-celled organism) parasite, is a disease of the liver and/or intestinal tract. Rabbits become infected by eating food or consuming water contaminated with feces from an infected rabbit. Signs depend on whether the disease is localized within the liver (inappetence, diarrhea, death) or the intestinal tract (weight loss, soft to watery feces, mucus and/or blood in feces, soiled anal area, dehydration, increased thirst, possibly death). The relative severity of both types of infection depends upon the number of coccidia eaten, the age of the rabbit, the strength of its immune system, and other illness in the rabbit Occasionally, the coccidia colonize the nasal passages, resulting in respiratory disease (nasal coccidiosis).

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 9:33 pm

tulerimia or rabbit fever. Kill it and do not touch it