‘Spreading like wildfire’: Rabbit disease decimating bunny population on Whidbey Island

LANGLEY, Wash. — A devastating disease is decimating the bunny population in Langley, on Whidbey Island. The town is known for its bunnies - beloved by many, though considered a nuisance to some.

The virus is called rabbit hemorrhagic disease, or RHDV2. It’s highly contagious and fatal for rabbits.

The Washington State Department of Agriculture said it first got a call reporting a dozen dead bunnies last week on Wednesday.

“We decided to go out and investigate a bit further,” said Amber Betts, a WSDA spokesperson. “We were able to get two specimens to take back and send to the lab. We got those results on Friday.”

Both deceased bunnies tested positive for the virus.

Langley is known for its bunny population. It started decades ago when some bunnies got away during a barnyard scramble – where animals are let loose in a barn and kids rush to catch them, for keeps.

Residents say hundreds of feral domestic rabbits are usually around town.

“It certainly attracts tourists, whether we like it or not,” said Zoe Wilson, 15, who is part of the local 4-H club.

But after just over a week of knowing about this outbreak – it’s hard for residents to find even one bunny.

“We started seeing bunnies on our walks, just lying dead in grassy areas kind of on the side of the road,” said Katherine Hansen, who lives in Langley.  “It’s been at least 50 years these bunnies have been populating the streets,” she said.

Now there is a sign from WSDA at the island fairgrounds – where the first dead bunnies were reported. The sign declares the area under quarantine and says no rabbits are allowed on the premise for 60 days.

The Port of South Whidbey also posted online about the virus, saying, “We have a high population of feral domestic bunnies and in the last week many have died. This is a serious issue.”

Another sign at the fairground entrance says, “ATTENTION: THE RABBITS ARE SICK”. It says all dogs should be leashed, people should wash their hands and tells people to not touch bunnies. People who find a dead rabbit should double-bag it and put it in the trash.

“Starting Monday, it (the virus) was just spreading like wildfire and bunnies were just succumbing to this overnight,” Hansen said.

The United States Department of Agriculture’s website says many times, the only signs of the disease are “sudden death and blood-stained noses caused by internal bleeding.”

The virus causes death within 12 to 36 hours. It’s highly contagious with rabbit mortality rates around 98%.

It can be spread by infected animals, or even by people’s clothing and shoes. Making the virus more dangerous as it can stay alive on surfaces for more than 3 months.

Wilson and Samantha Lapp, 13, are with the local 4-H Club and both have pet rabbits.

“It was scary,” Wilson said about first learning that the virus was spreading last weekend.

“I was really worried about the rabbits, especially mine,” Lapp said. She’s had her pet rabbit for about eight years.

The 4-H club helped “Useless Bay Animal Clinic” put on a vaccine event to protect domestic bunnies.

“It’s really contagious. Even if a fly gets it and goes into your bunny, it could get the virus - it’s horrible,” Wilson said.

Both say after 4-H events at the fairgrounds, they’re disinfecting their shoes and even car tires when they leave the premise.

“We got home and we immediately changed and washed our hands and made sure we’re super clean before we touch our rabbits,” Zoe said.

The WSDA said it is critical that people take that type of precaution.

“The biggest thing is if you’re a rabbit owner, we really emphasize those biosecurity practices, making sure your bunny doesn’t come in contact with those domestic feral rabbits,” Betts said.

Local vets are also urging pet owners to get the highly effective vaccine for pet bunnies, which protects against RDHV2.

But meanwhile, the town of Langley that’s normally hopping with bunnies is suddenly, very quiet

“It’s really heartbreaking to see. These bunnies are a pretty amazing part of the fabric of the community and it’ll be really sad if this eliminates that**

There was another outbreak of this virus here in 2019, though residents said it wasn’t nearly as severe as this latest outbreak.

Washington’s Department of Fish and Wildlife said as far as it knows, the outbreak has only impacted the feral domestic rabbits and pets -- not the wild rabbit population. However, the USDA said wild rabbit populations in 10 other states have been impacted by RHDV2 in just the past couple of years.

If you see any wild rabbits affected, report it to WDFW here: https://wdfw.wa.gov/get-involved/report-observations.

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