(WHTM) — Rabbits sporting tentacle-like growths in Colorado provided nightmare fuel over the internet this week.
Thankfully, officials there said it’s not a zombie outbreak and there’s nothing to worry about. But could it happen in Pennsylvania?
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What causes it?
While it may appear the rabbits have tentacles or horns, they’re actually wart-like growths called fibroma caused by the cottontail rabbit papillomavirus, also know as the Shope papillomavirus.
The PA Game Commission said the virus primarily transmits through biting insects such as fleas and mosquitoes. Humans are not at risk of acquiring rabbit papillomavirus.
Growths are the clearest clinical signs of infection, and they can occur anywhere on the body.
Can it happen here?
Pennsylvania’s Sunday hunting dates set by Game Commission
Yes. Rabbit papillomavirus naturally occurs in the wild throughout the eastern and Midwestern United States, including Pennsylvania.
The Game Commission said local outbreaks occasionally occur in cottontail rabbit populations. Because the virus does not affect population size, and meat from an infected animal is generally considered safe, management of it is not necessary, the commission said.
However, the commission said, proper preparation should be taken to avoid contamination from ulcerated fibromas.
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