Copied from AoL News Page 21st August 2006
A young farmer has died in what is believed to be Britain's first case of rabbit flu.
John Freeman, 29, became infected with the bacteria pasteurella multocida after picking up a rabbit on his farm.
His mother Joan said he fell ill the next day with a fever and died three days later.
A post-mortem revealed that Mr Freeman had died from septicaemia after becoming infected with the bacteria that causes pasteurellosis, which is known as rabbit flu.
A spokesman for the Heath Protection Agency said the bacteria was known to be common among many domestic animals, including cats and dogs, but he was not aware of any other fatal rabbit-to-human transmission.
He said there were only a handful of cases of humans being infected with pasteurella multocida each year, usually from dogs and cats, and deaths were very rare.
Mrs Freeman, who farms with her husband Peter at Aspall, near Stowmarket in Suffolk, said she was shocked that there was so little information about the disease among the farming community.
She wants to make people aware that handling dead rabbits can be potentially fatal.
She said: "People should just be aware that there is this dreadful thing around and potentially its lethal. Once it is in the blood stream, that's it."
Mr Freeman, the couple's only son, died on August 5 - four days after falling ill.
