Joy Greenwald, Townsquare Media
Joy Greenwald, Townsquare Media
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Tularemia has been diagnosed in two cottontail rabbits a few miles northeast of Guernsey.

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department says a landowner along Whelen Canyon Road discovered about 20 dead rabbits. Two of the rabbits were sent to the Game and Fish's Wildlife Diseases Laboratory and both tested positive for tularemia.

Tularemia, which is fairly common in rodents and rabbits, is a bacterial disease that can be transmitted to humans and their pets.

Wheatland Game Warden David Ellsworth says the disease occurs in the state almost every year, but is not cause for alarm. He says like most other wildlife diseases, tularemia is more likely to occur during periods of high populations, which cottontail rabbits are experiencing now.

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