Rabbit calicivirus (RHDV) causes mass mortality in wild and domestic rabbit populations, with welfare implications for both target and non-target animals.
RHDV creates complex welfare considerations. In target wild populations, hemorrhagic disease causes acute internal bleeding, liver necrosis, and rapid death — suffering is intense but brief. Mass mortality events leave surviving rabbits in disrupted social groups and depleted food environments. The collapse of rabbit prey in Iberian Peninsula ecosystems has secondary welfare consequences for lynx and eagles facing prey scarcity. For domestic rabbits, RHDV represents a preventable welfare risk: unvaccinated pet rabbits exposed through contaminated vegetation, insects, or wild rabbit contact can die rapidly from a disease their owners may not know circulates locally. Vaccination is the critical intervention.