FORT COLLINS, Colo. (KUSA) – Residents in Fort Collins have been spotting something unusual while walking in their neighborhoods: rabbits that appear to have tentacle-like growths on their faces.

KUSA reached out to Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the NOCO Humane Society about the unusual bunnies.

Rabbits appear to enjoy living in Fort Collins just as much as people. They’re often spotted hopping through neighborhoods and looking for grub.

But there are rabbits that when neighbors spot them, “cute” isn’t exactly the word that comes to mind.

“It’s kind of like a, just like a scabby-ish-looking growth over their face,” one resident, who didn’t provide her name, said.

A photo of one of the rabbits, spotted in Fort Collins, was posted on Reddit.

“Looks like it was black quills or black toothpicks sticking out all around his mouth, or her mouth,” Susan Mansfield said.

Mansfield said she spotted a different bunny in her yard in recent years

“He had the same black stuff on him,” she said. “I thought he would die off during the winter, but he didn’t, he came back a second year, and it grew.”

Some feel bad for our tiny neighbors.

“That if they have plague or if they have something that we can help them with,” one resident said.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife confirmed this is a virus, but it’s not contagious to other animals. They did say people should leave the animals alone, like you would for all wildlife.

I also reached out to Colorado Parks and Wildlife, who said there’s no cure for this virus, it’s like warts or benign cancerous cells that keep growing.

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