Canada - 1 outbreak of rabbit haemorrhagic disease in a hobby rabbit farm in Mont-Joli, Bas-Saint-Laurent, Quebec (OIE, August 25, 2016)

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Rabbit haemorrhagic disease, Canada

Information received on 25/08/2016 from Dr Martine Dubuc, OIE Delegate for Canada, Chief Food Safety Officer Vice-President, Science Branch, Health Ministry, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Ottawa, Canada

Summary Report type Immediate notification Date of start of the event 13/08/2016 Date of confirmation of the event 23/08/2016 Report date 25/08/2016 Date submitted to OIE 25/08/2016 Reason for notification Reoccurrence of a listed disease Date of previous occurrence 30/03/2011 Manifestation of disease Clinical disease Causal agent Calicivirus Serotype RHDV2 Nature of diagnosis Laboratory (advanced), Necropsy This event pertains to a defined zone within the country

New outbreaks (1)

Outbreak 1 (QUE-2016-001) Mont-Joli, Bas-Saint-Laurent, QUEBEC Date of start of the outbreak 13/08/2016 Outbreak status Continuing (or date resolved not provided) Epidemiological unit Backyard Affected animals Species Susceptible Cases Deaths Destroyed Slaughtered Rabbits 23 18 18 2 Affected population Hobby rabbit farm (companion animals).

Summary of outbreaks Total outbreaks: 1 Total animals affected Species Susceptible Cases Deaths Destroyed Slaughtered Rabbits 23 18 18 2 Outbreak statistics Species Apparent morbidity rate Apparent mortality rate Apparent case fatality rate Proportion susceptible animals lost* Rabbits 78.26% 78.26% 100.00% ** *Removed from the susceptible population through death, destruction and/or slaughter **Not calculated because of missing information

Epidemiology Source of the outbreak(s) or origin of infection Unknown or inconclusive Introduction of new live animals Epidemiological comments New rabbits were introduced from another farm recently, with high mortality observed in the following days. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has initiated an investigation, in collaboration with the Minist?re de l'Agriculture, des P?cheries et de l'Alimentation du Qu?bec in order to identify possible sources of infection. Quarantine measures have been implemented, under the authority of the CFIA. On August 23, 2016, the National Center for Foreign Animal Disease (Winnipeg, CFIA) confirmed the presence of RHDV2. A 350 base pair RT-PCR amplicon representing 3' end of VP60 gene was sequenced. The sequence showed 96.2% identity to RHDVb (or RHDV2) isolate (GenBank: KT000337.1) from S?o Jorge in Azores Islands.

Control measures Measures applied Screening Traceability Quarantine Stamping out Vaccination prohibited No treatment of affected animals Measures to be applied Disinfection / Disinfestation

Diagnostic test results Laboratory name and type Species Test Test date Result National Center for Foreign Animal Disease (Winnipeg, CFIA) (National laboratory) Rabbits electron microscopy 19/08/2016 Positive National Center for Foreign Animal Disease (Winnipeg, CFIA) (National laboratory) Rabbits immunohistochemical test Pending National Center for Foreign Animal Disease (Winnipeg, CFIA) (National laboratory) Rabbits nucleotide sequencing 19/08/2016 Positive National Center for Foreign Animal Disease (Winnipeg, CFIA) (National laboratory) Rabbits nucleotide sequencing 23/08/2016 Positive National Center for Foreign Animal Disease (Winnipeg, CFIA) (National laboratory) Rabbits reverse transcription - polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) 18/08/2016 Positive National Center for Foreign Animal Disease (Winnipeg, CFIA) (National laboratory) Rabbits virus isolation Pending Animal pathology laboratory ? MAPAQ (Regional Laboratory) Rabbits histopathological examination 17/08/2016 Positive

Future Reporting The event is continuing. Weekly follow-up reports will be submitted.

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http://www.oie.int/wahis_2/public/wahid.php/Reviewreport/Review?page_refer=MapFullEventReport&reportid=20799