njc110381 Posted November 9, 2009 Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 I was out with the new combi gun today looking for some Pigeons. There wasn't much about so I decided to have a wander around the boundarys to check the fences etc on the way back to the truck. A Rabbit bolted from the hedge and ran quite normally for about 20 yards, at which point the pellets caught up with it and took it down. When I went to pick it up it had a large tumour type growth on its side just in front of its back leg. I poked it with a stick (I'm so glad I didn't try to feel it with my hand) and it burst puss all down the side of the bunny This lump was about the size of a tennis ball cut in half and even after it had burst it was still quite a solid lump. The contents were the consistency of bathroom sealant, quite sticky and thick and a very light cream colour. Does anyone know what it could be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted November 9, 2009 Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 if it burst it was an infection of some form, sounds pretty severe though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted November 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 It was very big for the size of its host! I was amazed it managed to run so comfortably with that attatched to it. Animals are amazing things, they can deal with so much more than humans! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigstevouk Posted November 9, 2009 Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 Had the same one week ago...... my shooting budy said to me as we walked towards the rabbit 'what's that on it's leg?' and as you said looked like a tennis ball, well it was a tumour of some sort (horrible looking), wish i had took a picture now........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George1990 Posted November 9, 2009 Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 My dad shot one, and tapped it under the jaw with his foot, exploding what must have been one of these, a few feet in the air out of it's eyeball! Complete head explosion. Unfortunately I didn't see it. I did get a shock once when cleaning one, and I popped a tapeworm cyst which was under very high pressure to say the least. All up my arm and in my face. all adds to the fun though eh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoot2kill Posted November 9, 2009 Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 someone toldme the sap has grate protein if u drink it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr lee Posted November 9, 2009 Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 Did it look like it had been shot with a pellet or similar before? We had one last year that had been shot before and survived. When we gutted it there was a huge tumour on it's rib cage where someone had shot it with what looked like a .22 pellet. Pellet still wedged inside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beardo Posted November 9, 2009 Report Share Posted November 9, 2009 we had one last week with two golf ball size tumours inside it - they literally looked like white golf balls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted November 10, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 10, 2009 I didn't look to see if it had been shot before, it was pretty messy. I doubt it though, it was quite a way from a footpath and I'm the only shooter on the ground. The smallest calibre I've used there is a HMR and I doubt it would have got over a bad hit from that. I wouldn't be that far out anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexm Posted November 10, 2009 Report Share Posted November 10, 2009 From the description of what came out it was likely a very large abscess formed from a bite or small wound that became infected. Rabbits are particularly prone to them as they seem to produce puss with a cheesy consistency that doesn't drain easily. Tapeworm cysts tend to have a clear liquid in them with what looks like little grains of rice (actually the tapeworm heads or 'scolex' that are waiting to attach to a dog's intestine ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pigeon_snIPer Posted November 10, 2009 Report Share Posted November 10, 2009 Are those with these kind of tumors and infections safe to consume? /s/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexm Posted November 10, 2009 Report Share Posted November 10, 2009 (edited) Are those with these kind of tumors and infections safe to consume?/s/ The two main causes of exterior lumps on rabbits are abscess and nodular myxomatosis legions (where a rabbit has developed some immunity to Myxy). Abscesses are the result of bacterial infection and the bacteria involved could be any of several species, some of which are transferable to humans (e.g. Strep. and Staph.) and for that reason they are probably better off not eaten even if the risk is slim with removing the affected limb, cooking well etc. Myxomatosis is caused by a virus that is not transferable to humans, however due to the open legions in the skin there could be a risk of secondary bacterial infections being present and therefore it is probably not recommended. Also, they really don't look very appealing, do they! This is from the point of view of shooting for personal consumption where you can choose to risk it or not. Neither of the above should be passed into the public food chain. Edited November 10, 2009 by alexm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apache Posted November 10, 2009 Report Share Posted November 10, 2009 Alexm is right - the white cheesy substance is rabbit puss. 'caseous' Don't eat diseased anything! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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