Eating Rabbits in the Summer

[trapperb]

When rabbits invade my summer garden I take this approach; they like my garden so well I let them stay!        :D    :D    Of course that's after a judo point and shovel are used effectively!  

[RC]

Don`t know about rabbits but our tree rat season comes in mid august and its plenty hot and we eat`m. I doubt injuns let`m go...RC

[Thumper Dunker]

Out here we do not have real winters and they have them all year long . Harmles . They are bot flie larve all game animals get them . Cattle have them also. Just pluck them off. Cook them good and no worries.

[Jeremy]

Y'all are talking about two things.  The bot fly larva (which won't transfer to another animal after they've infected the rabbit - human infection is very rare) and tulameria (a bacterial infection that can infect people and be fatal if untreated)

[RAU]

Thanks alot for the serious replies guys. Much appreciated. I knew someone would think they were cute letting me know when their rabbit seasons open. Rabbit season opens in my garden in the spring and continues into the fall.

Don

[lpcjon2]

Why would the first frost kill the worms when they are between the skin and the muscle wouldn't the rabbit's body heat keep them warm?And if the frost kills then what happens to them do they breakdown and get absorbed into the muscle tissue?and how did they get under the skin to begin with, via a fly or are they from the mouth, ear, or anus?

[Northwest_Bowhunter]

Originally posted by daveycrockett:
Don't know how true it is, but my Grandma and Pa used to say eat 'em only in the months with an R in them.

So September through April?

[bentpole]

Are they legal to "HUNT" this time of year in Pennsy?

[J-dog]

Yeah we call em wolves (sp?) wait till after first freeze

[texas woody]

I grew up in WV and was told all my life not to eat before the first freeze due to worbles. never tried to buck the system.

[carparcher]

My father always told me (when I was growing up in Wisconsin) that you look at the liver.  If it's spotted, you leave it where it died.  The rest of them can't compete w/ hot oil!  Any and all pork needs to be cooked for the same reason.  You cook it through, and you'll be fine.
 

[BMejia]

good topic, i have never heard of such things. i have a rabbit checking out my garden that i was thinking of introducing to a judo tipped shaft...this may change his fate

[Coonbait]

Rau, I'm sorry you thought I was trying to be cute. I really wasn't trying. I,ve got deer eatting out of my garden and a young bear tore apart my wifes hummingbird feeder and it never crossed my mine to shoot them because of it. Try a little chicken wire around the garden and see if that might help. Or even a live trap could get the job done. It amazes me that if I said I shot a deer out of season I'd be hammered to death on this or any site, but small game is fair game all season. Just saying.
GLENN MOYER

[Zbone]

Worbles come from what my grandfather called a blowfly.


Basically the blowfly lays an egg on the critter and it turns into a maggot that grows into a worble about the size of your finger. Was told you can cut the bad part off and still okay to eat, but you won't get me to eat one.

Rabbit Fever is "Tularemia - caused by the bacterium Francisella tularensis.

Humans can get the disease through:

Direct contact, through a break in the skin, with an infected animal or its dead body
The bite of an infected tick, horsefly, or mosquito
Eating infected meat (rare)

Areas where the disorder most commonly occurs include North America and parts of Europe and Asia. The illness may continue for several weeks after symptoms begin.

Some people may develop pneumonia after being infected. Risk factors include recent exposure to rabbits or a recent tick bite. The disease is very rare in the United States.

Francisella tularensis is considered a potential bioterrorism agent. An aerosol release would be a possible method of infection. Pneumonia cases would start 1 - 10 days after people were exposed.

Tests & diagnosis
Blood culture for tularemia
Blood test measuring the body's immune response to the infection (serology for tularemia)
Chest x-ray
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test of a sample from an ulcer
This disease may also affect the results of febrile/cold agglutinins.

Prognosis
Tularemia is fatal in about 5% of untreated cases, and in less than 1% of treated cases.

Prevention
A vaccine is recommended for people at high risk (trappers, hunters, and laboratory workers who work with the bacteria)."

[Running Buck]

My wife and I raised rabbits for about ten years. I learned all about rabbit feaver(tularemia) and its nothing to mess around with. If you have bunnies chewing up your garden, try using a havahart box trap baited with some small pieces of bread laced with anise oil. Rabbits seem to be drawn to the licorice smell.

[B/W lvr]

Skin em  cook em and eat them. Any worms left will be full of protein and good to eat. Rabbit fever doesnt preclude your eating the meat just clean them with rubber gloves on and bbq away. Good eating. Frank

[RAU]

Coonbait,
Thanks for the clarification. Only wanted to know if their safe to eat not an ethics discussion on the PC way to remove garden pests.
Don

[Butch Speer]

Check this out.  Warbles

[Don Stokes]

The botfly larvae only infest healthy animals, so the ones with the worms are the ones that are safe to eat. The larvae are only under the skin and don't hurt the meat. I have read somewhere that Native Americans would only eat a squirrel or rabbit in warm weather if it DID have a botfly larva. Haven't tested that premise myself, however.

[Bush]

Just make sure that they are well done, and you will be fine.  Eaten rabbit tons of times with no issues (that I know of).