LANSING — The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development’s state veterinarian, Dr. Nora Wineland, on Wednesday authorized the use of a new vaccine for rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus type 2 (RHDV2), which must be administered by a Michigan licensed veterinarian.

The implementation of this vaccine further safeguards domestic rabbits from the deadly disease, MDARD said.

RHDV2 is an extremely contagious, fatal disease for rabbits and hares, it said. While RHDV2 does not affect people or other species of animals, virtually all rabbits and hares that contract the disease will die. At this time, there have been no reported cases of RHDV2 in Michigan; however, cases have been confirmed in other states.

The South Dakota-based company, Medgene Labs, developed the vaccine. The product was granted emergency use approval by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for wide use in the United States. The vaccine is an inactivated (killed) recombinant subunit vaccine given subcutaneously in two doses, 21 days apart. Full immunity develops 14 days after the second dose.

The vaccine is only available to, and must be administered by, licensed veterinarians in Michigan.

If you are a veterinarian and interested in obtaining the vaccine, contact Medgene Labs at 605-697-2600.