Rural
10 December, 2023
Rabbit calicivirus testing
Are you a domestic rabbit owner, veterinarian or land holder and suspect a rabbit may have died of calicivirus?
You can request a free test kit by sending an email to rabbitcalicivirus@csiro.au with your postal address.
The test requires submitting a fresh or frozen (not formalin-fixed) liver sample.
Sampling instructions and a submission form can be downloaded from the CSIRO website.
Participants are required to freeze the whole rabbit or a liver sample in a ziplock bag or sterile urine jar until the test kit arrives.
Once in the preservative, the liver sample is stable at room temperature and can be posted to the CSIRO in the regular post.
Samples without a completed submission form will not be tested.
Results should be available within one to two weeks, barring any technical difficulties.
The CSIRO said it is preferred that wild rabbit samples are submitted via the Rabbitscan website.
Click on the ‘Record potential disease’ tab of the Rabbit Biocontrol Tracker to request a sample kit.
This is a simple automated process, if you prefer not to complete a submission form.
If you suspect a rabbit may have died of myxomatosis, you can request a free test kit by emailing your postal address to rabbitcalicivirus@csiro.au.
Submit a fresh or frozen (not formalin-fixed) eyelid sample.
Sampling instructions and a submission form can be downloaded by following the links on the CSIRO website.
Once in the preservative, the sample is stable at room temperature and can be posted to the CSIRO in the regular post.
Samples without a completed submission form will not be tested.
This is not part of the CSIRO’s routine testing, so results may take up to four weeks.
