X-RAY LIBRARIES

Preventative Medicine

In zoo medicine most of the work involves preventative measures. The wild carnivores are routinely vaccinated for infectious viruses. The ungulates are vaccinated for common bacterial diseases and the viral diseases which tend to be caught from roaming domestic livestock. Not only disease risks or parasites can pose problems to zoo animals but their body condition and nutritional requirement vary throughout the seasons of the year, particularly during pregnancy and lactation. Continual monitoring of feeding practice ensures healthy growth and reproduction.

Assisted Reproduction

The Veterinary Department conducts assisted breeding programmes in the Arabian leopard and Gordon’s wildcat. These projects were initiated by the team at Henry Doorly Zoo, Omaha, USA and aim to gain reproductive roles from animals which are unable to breed naturally and to increase our understanding of their reproductive physiology. Hormone protocols have been evaluated for the superovulation of the Arabian leopard and subsequent oocyte retrieval and fertilization has lead to embryo production.  Furthermore, semen banking has been set up for various Arabian species for potential use in in vitro fertilization or artificial insemination projects since many of the Arabian carnivores are in danger of extinction. Immediate post mortem harvesting of semen is performed on all important Arabian animals in order to allow propagation of their genes in the breeding programme

Parasitology

All animals at the Breeding Centre are subjected to bi-annual faecal examination in order to detect any patent endoparasites. This is performed by fresh faecal flotation and microscopy to detect worm eggs. New animals entering quarantine are subjected to two faecal examinations in order to detect freedom of patent endoparasite infection prior to introduction to the existing stock. This is very important to prevent the acquisition of new endoparasite strains on site. Furthermore, animals displaying gastrointestinal or respiratory disorder are also checked for the presence of worm eggs in their stools. The identification of the endoparasite involved aids the interpretation of disease association and determines the subsequent treatment thereof. For the coccidian species sporulation times as well as microscopic appearance is used in speciation. Routine de-worming of all the animals is performed on a bi-annual basis.

Any ectoparasites found on incoming or stock animals are identified such that appropriate treatment can be initiated. In particular, confiscated animals carrying ectoparasites are a great potential source of arthropod borne diseases such as the plague carried by fleas.

Quarantine

New arrivals are placed in quarantine in order to control disease and prevent a possible spread to our existing stock. Most of the new acquisitions are however not new Breeding Centre stock but confiscations from Sharjah airport and sea port. There is a great deal of illegal trade in live animals and these are brought to the Breeding Centre for rehabilitation. Most of these animals arrive in a sick and dehydrated state or are already dead on arrival. The most common confiscated species are the North African cheetah, Houbara and Sudanese bustards, falcons and various gazelle species. All these animals are checked on arrival and during quarantine for signs of disease or parasite burden. Preventative measures are initiated to control disease. They are only released from quarantine if no signs of ill health are found after 6 weeks.

Post mortem

 Clinical Cases

Glaucoma in Jackal

One of the hand-raised jackal puppies developed a swollen left eye this quarter. It was the day after a storm and the eye had been exposed to mild trauma. The cornea appeared grey and was examined for signs of foreign bodies or ulceration. Fluorescin dye was applied to the eye to highlight any superficial corneal damage. There was no corneal ulceration and the eye was treated with strong topical anti-inflammatories. After a few days the eye was worse, with more swelling and pain. The jackal, Shams, was started on a course of systemic antibiotics and steroids for suspected uveitis. Uveitis is an inflammatory condition of the uveal tract of which the iris is visible externally. The cause can be anything from a bacterial infection, viral infection, protozoal infection, trauma, inappropriate immune response or idiopathic. Atropine was included in the topical drops to relieve spasm of the iris, which is the origin of the pain.

The eye continued to deteriorate and a week later the globe was significantly enlarged. The condition was a glaucoma, which is an increased intra-ocular pressure due to abnormal production or draining of aqueous humor. Glaucoma can occur as a result of a uveitis or can be primary. Primary glaucomas are not uncommon in canids. The canid eye is susceptible to this due to the anatomy of the iridocorneal angle. This is the junction of the iris and the cornea where the aqueous humor is filtered out of the eye.

 It was decided to try to treat the eye medically first and should this fail, to enucleate the globe. Shams was sedated for 12 hours on 3 days in order to allow a constant infusion of an osmotic diurectic. A catheter was placed in his cephalic vein and a mannitol drip was set up to drip at a very slow rate. The mannitol served to draw excessive fluid from the globe and reduce the intra-ocular pressure. Shams was very well behaved on the first day of treatment though became more restless during the following two treatment days. Topical treatment included an ophthalmic beta adrenoceptor blocker and a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor that reduces the production of aqueous humor thereby reducing the intra-ocular pressure.

 There was a significant yet insufficient response to medical treatment and it did not provide a permanent solution. Shams was taken to Dubai Veterinary Hospital for enucleation of the left eye. He recovered well from the surgery and wore an Elizabethan collar for one week to prevent scratching of the surgical site. In the first few days he became nauseous and dehydrated. His antibiotics were discontinued and he was given intravenous fluids. A week later he was fully recovered and had a good appetite.  

Shams has coped well with only one eye and together with his brother, make a very friendly and playful pair of jackals.

Fighting Injuries

Fighting amongst animals kept in groups will always be a problem in captive collections. The lack of space increases the chance of confrontations and growing juvenile males often provoke fights with their sires. Fighting injuries are usually not fatal. This quarter we have treated soft tissue injuries in rock hyrax, two Gordon’s wildcats, a Brandt’s hedgehog, a Sand gazelle and a Dorcas gazelle. Treatment involves cleaning and debriding the wounds 2-3 times a week and a course of antibiotics.

Animals that died with their injuries or were euthanased include one Sand gazelle and a rock hyrax.

 One wild goat, Rocky, suffered a fractured leg after fighting with two wild sheep. The sheep had dominated Rocky for over a year and with their heavy body weight and large horns were able to cause a complete, displaced, comminuted mid-shaft fracture of the femur. Rocky was euthanased for his injury.

Two Oryx Die of Unknown Cause

There were two deaths of Arabian oryx held in the male herd this quarter. In April, one of the males was noted to be separate from the herd and spending most of the day lying down. On approach he was reluctant to move yet was able to stand up. Beside the intense paresis there were no further clinical signs. The following day he was found in lateral recumbency, paddling and died soon thereafter. Post mortem examination revealed no gross pathology. He did carry a large burden of Taenia tenuicollis cysts, which were suspected to be an incidental finding.

 In June, a second male oryx from the same camp was separated from the herd and recumbent. He was seen to strain heavily in lateral recumbency on several occasions. He had no diarrhoea and no oculo-nasal discharge. He was treated with flunixin from which he gained some relief. After several hours, he did stand up reluctantly on approach. By the evening, he was again in lateral recumbency and it was decided to euthanase him. Post mortem examination revealed diseased kidneys and no further gross pathology. There were no fighting injuries to this animal.

 Both of these oryx were middle-aged adults, the first one in lean/poor body condition and the second one in good body condition. None of the gazelles held in the camp have been affected. Histopathology should provide more information as to whether there is any poison or heavy metal involvement in these deaths. 

Lick granulomas on cheetah Niswa

One of the female cheetahs, Niswa, developed two lick granulomas, which are thick, chronic, raw lesions caused by repetitive licking. The site affected is always an easily accessible site for the animal to reach such as the distal limb. Once repetitive licking irritates the skin, a vicious cycle of inflammation and pruritis occurs which is difficult to break. The lesion becomes exudative and painful. She was treated with oral steroids for 3 weeks to reduce the inflammation. One of her cage mates, Annie, also started licking herself but did not need treatment. 

Lick granulomas are common in pet dogs and cats. It is believed to have a psychological cause with stress involvement. Distraction and training of pets will often solve the problems with no medical treatment. Changing the animal’s environment or cage sometimes prevents the repetitive behaviour. 

Sandcat cachexic

Two sandcats suffered from cachexia this quarter. Cachexia is a term used to describe a state of generalized catabolism and wastage. The cause can be multi-factorial involving cardiac, liver, intestinal and kidney function.  

One of the old sandcats, Margarita, was noted to have a lump under her jaw and a droopy ear on the same side. She was anaesthetized the following day for a clinical examination and was found to be in very poor condition. She had ulcers on her gingiva and tongue. She had a chronic one-sided pharyngitis. She was intubated and her oral cavity was rinsed thoroughly with chlorhexidine. The sub-lingual salivary gland was enlarged on the right. Her eyes were normal. Her kidneys were scanned and found to have reduced cortico-medullary definition and increased renal echogenicity consistent with chronic renal disease. Her blood picture showed a mild anaemia, dehydration and raised urea nitrogen all consistent with renal insufficiency.  Her facial nerve paralysis may have been coincidental. 

She was treated with fluids, antibiotics, anabolic steroids, vitamins and a renal diet. The dietary change is critical to reduce the burden of the kidney thereby reducing the progression of the renal failure. The dietary change involved increasing the carbohydrates, reducing the protein and increasing the fibre content. Kaolin and cod liver oil was added. These changes help to increase the phosphate and nitrogen excretion which are responsible for the clinical signs associated with renal failure.

 Margarita was hand-caught 6 weeks later and her condition had improved. She had gained 7% of her body weight and her coat had improved. The mass under her chin was gone but she still had a droopy ear. A further 4 weeks later the ear was back to normal. She will continue on the new diet permanently. It is not expected that her body condition will return to normal but it is aimed for her to maintain a good quality of life. 

A second sandcat, one recently arrived with her two sisters from Qatar, also presented with a slow onset cachexia. She lost weight whilst maintaining a good appetite. She was the calmest sandcat of the three sisters. After several weeks she became weak and depressed. She was treated with fluids, antibiotics, vitamins and anabolic steroids but failed to respond. She was euthanased soon thereafter. A post mortem examination revealed little gross pathology and further laboratory results on this case are still pending.

 Baboons infected with Giarda