Effectiveness of a non-surgical alternative to the Mules operation in sheep

Objective To measure changes to the perineal bare area, local tissue reaction and healing responses of young sheep, following intradermal administration of cetrimide and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), with and without ethanol, to the breech and tail. Method A needle‐less injector was used to deposit formulations containing 40 g/L cetrimide and 30 g/L PVP (group 2) or 20 g/L cetrimide, 30 g/L PVP and 15 g/L ethanol (group 3), within the dermis of the tail and the region surrounding the perineal bare breech area of groups (N = 8) of Merino weaner sheep. The dimensions of the perineal bare area (length, width and diagonal distances left and right) and tail width were recorded before and at intervals after treatment for 60 days. Observations of swelling and bruising and scab formation at the treatment sites were recorded for up to 35 days after treatment. Rectal temperatures were monitored for up to 35 days after treatment and bodyweight for up to 60 days after treatment. An untreated control group (group 1) was included. Results Comparison of day ‐3 and day 35 measurement data showed that both treated groups had significantly (P < 0.05) wider breech bare areas compared to the untreated controls and that group 2 sheep had significantly (P < 0.05) longer breech bare areas compared to group 3 sheep or to the untreated controls, which were not significantly different. At this time scabs were still firmly in place on many treated sheep. At day 35 there was no increase in tail bare area caused by either treatment. By day 60 there was no significant difference between the treated and control groups in either the breech or tail regions indicating that the changes present at day 35, were not permanent. Mean weight gain in the groups throughout the 60‐day interval was unaffected by treatment. Intradermal treatment was associated with a significant elevation in body temperature. This effect lasted for 3 days and was associated with signs of discomfort and depressed appearance in at least some of the treated sheep. Bruising was mild to severe in all treated sheep within two days of treatment but was not evident in any sheep by day 21. Mild to moderate swelling was also associated with treatment but was not uniform across sheep in the groups. The tail of one sheep was severely swollen for several days. Swelling remained obvious in most treated sheep until day 14 but was not present at day 21. Conclusion Under the conditions of this study intradermal injection of cetrimide had no permanent effect on bare area measurements on the breech or the amount of wool‐bearing skin on the tail. It also caused signs of discomfort and pain that raise welfare concerns.     

Physiological and behavioural effects of intradermal injection of sodium lauryl sulfate as an alternative to mulesing in lambs

Objective To assess the effects on physiology and behaviour of intradermal injection of sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) as an alternative to mulesing. Procedures Three groups of Merino lambs were studied: Control (n = 10), SLS (n = 11) and Mulesed (n = 11). The SLS group received SLS (7% w/v) and benzyl alcohol (20 mg/mL) in phosphate buffer, and the Mulesed group received 6 mL topical local anaesthetic as a wound dressing. Haematology, cortisol, beta-endorphin and haptoglobin concentrations, rectal temperatures, body weight and behaviours were monitored for up to 42 days post treatments. Results SLS treatment induced mild swelling followed by thin scab formation. Fever (>40°C) was observed at 12 and 24 h, cortisol concentration was elevated on days 1 and 2, haptoglobin concentration was highly elevated on days 2–7, white blood cell count was elevated on days 2 and 4 post treatment, but average daily gain was not affected. Fever at 12 h was significantly higher in the SLS than in the Mulesed group, whereas maximum temperature, temperature area under the curve (AUC), occurrence of fever, cortisol profile, cortisol AUC, white blood cell counts and haptoglobin concentrations until day 7 were comparable. The behaviours of normal standing, total standing and total lying were modified for 2 days by SLS treatment, but changes were less marked and of shorter duration than in the Mulesed group. On day 1, the SLS group spent <5% of time in total abnormal behaviours compared with 18% in the Mulesed group. The SLS group tended to spend more time in abnormal behaviours on day 1 than the Controls. Conclusions The behaviour of the SLS group was similar to that of the unmulesed Controls and their physiological responses were intermediate between the Mulesed lambs receiving post-surgical analgesia and the Controls.     

Prevalence of breech-strike in mulesed, clipped and unmulesed Merino hoggets in south-eastern Australia

Objective To compare the prevalence of breech flystrike (‘breech‐strike’) on 12–20‐month‐old Merino hoggets that were mulesed, had breech and tail clips applied (‘clipped’) or were left unmulesed but treated strategically with long‐acting insecticide. Design A cohort study on three farms in southern Victoria. Methods Three treatment groups were established at lamb marking on each farm. The unmulesed group was treated with dicyclanil when 12 months old in September or October (‘early‐season treatment’). The prevalence of breech‐strike and key risk factors, including soiling of the breech with faeces (‘dag’) and urine (‘stain’), and breech wrinkle, were compared between the groups. Results Over all the farms, breech‐strike occurred on 1.1% of mulesed sheep and 7.7% of clipped sheep. Clipped sheep had a relative risk of breech‐strike of 18.2‐, 16.8‐ and 3.0‐fold that of mulesed sheep on the three farms. Unmulesed sheep treated with dicyclanil had a similar prevalence of breech‐strike to that of mulesed sheep (overall 0.9%, range 0–2.5%), but had significantly more dag, stain and wrinkle. Conclusion Early‐season treatment of unmulesed sheep prevented most breech‐strikes during the spring and early summer, and offers a short‐ to medium‐term option for the control of breech‐strike in south‐eastern Australia. There were some benefits associated with using clips, namely less dag and stain, and a shorter time spent crutching. However, to control breech‐strike the clipped sheep should be treated the same as unmulesed sheep. Reducing the prevalence and severity of dag will be a major component of strategies to control breech‐strike of Merinos in this region.     

Wound healing after mulesing and other options for controlling breech flystrike in Merino lambs: quantitative and semiquantitative analysis of wound healing and wound bed contraction

Background A two‐part study examined wound healing and contraction occurring after mulesing and two alternative methods of preventing breech flystrike in sheep. Objective To quantify wound healing using a scoring system and to assess the contractility of the wound bed of the breech after mulesing, cetrimide‐intradermal treatment and application of clips. Method The study group of 30 mulesed, 30 cetrimide‐intradermal treated, 30 control and 10 clip‐treated sheep were humanely killed at six time points from 3 to 47 days after each treatment. Wound healing post treatment was assessed using a scoring system, and contractility was assessed by the quantification of myofibroblast expression. Statistical analyses allowed comparisons of temporal wound healing and contraction between treatment groups. Results Mulesing wounds healed faster in the first 11 days, but by 19 days wound healing was similar between the mulesing and cetrimide‐intradermal groups. By 32 days, all three treatment groups had similar wound healing scores. There was greater myofibroblast expression in the mulesing group in the first 11 days after treatment, but by 19 days expression was similar in both the mulesing and cetrimide‐intradermal groups. The clip group had significantly less myofibroblast expression from 32 days after treatment. Conclusion Wound healing is initially most rapid after mulesing, but there are similar wound healing scores in the mulesing and cetrimide‐intradermal treatment groups by 19 days. Both mulesing and the cetrimide‐intradermal treatment induce a similar amount of wound bed contraction, with less contraction observed after application of clips.     

Inflammation induced by subcutaneous turpentine inoculation of young American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis)

Turpentine-induced skin lesions in young American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) kept at 25 C were used to study inflammatory response in a reptile. Skin harvested at intervals between 4 hours and 30 days after inoculations were done had no gross changes until days 24 to 26, when superficial skin necrosis was evident. Early responses of congestion and dermal edema (4 to 8 hours) were seen by light microscopy, and these were followed by necrosis and granulocyte migration (1 to 3 days). Later, there was predominance of monocytic cells, including vacuolated macrophages (7 to 30 days). Evident at 14 days and prominent by day 30 were central dermal zones of necrotic debris surrounded by orderly palisades of vacuolated multinucleated giant cells and capillary-laden immature fibrous connective tissue. Systemic illness or visceral lesions were not observed. Controls, given inoculations of sterile saline solution, had no gross or microscopic changes.     

Sheep pox: experimental studies with a west african isolate

Under conditions of a maximum security laboratory, four cross-bred sheep were inoculated intradermally only or intradermally and intratracheally with a West African isolate of sheep pox virus. All sheep had increased temperature and depression by the fourth or fifth day after infection. Nasal and lacrimal discharge and coughing occurred in all sheep but were more severe in sheep receiving the virus via the tracheal route. From the fifth day after infection, numerous papular erythematous skin lesions developed at the inoculation sites. These were 3-7 mm in diameter and gradually became nodular. Some of these lesions healed and others coalesced to form tumorlike masses. In one sheep, euthanized 14 days after intradermal and intratracheal inoculation, nodular lesions were found in the skin around the eyes, nostrils, oral and perianal regions, the mucosa of the rumen and throughout the lungs. Histologically, skin nodules were characterized by ischemic necrosis, vasculitis, microvesicualtion, eosinophilic cytoplasmic inclusions in the dermal epithelial cells and vacuolar nuclear degeneration. The pulmonary lesion was that of proliferative alveolitis with occasional cytoplasmic inclusions in the alveolar cells and macrophages. Ultrastructurally, large cuboidal virus particles were found both in the skin lesion and inoculated tissue cultures. The sheep pox virus structure was easily distinguished from contagious ecthyma virus, a parapoxvirus which causes sporadic disease in Canada. Serum neutralizing antibodies developed in all the sheep by 14 days postinfection.

The clinical and pathological characteristics of experimental sheep pox produced with this West African isolate were similar to those caused by Neethling virus of lumpy skin disease in cattle.

     

Strategic use of crutching and dicyclanil to protect unmulesed sheep against breech strike

Objective   To test strategies for the application of dicyclanil and mid-season crutching to maximise protection of unmulesed sheep against breech strike.
Procedure   Three hundred and eighty unmulesed Merino weaners were randomly allocated to four groups either left untreated or treated by different strategies with 50 g/L dicyclanil. Treatments included breech treatment alone and breech plus body treatment, with two application times, immediately after shearing and 6 weeks after crutching or shearing. To assess protection, larval implants with newly hatched Lucilia cuprina larvae were applied to 10 different sheep from each group at 3, 4, 5 and 6 months after crutching and shearing and assessed for the development of strike at 48 hours. The concentration of dicyclanil was measured in wool samples clipped from the breeches of the test sheep.
Results   All dicyclanil treatments gave significant reduction in strike in comparison to controls up until 4 months after crutching but protection in the sheep treated immediately after shearing had waned at 5 months. Treating at 6 weeks after crutching provided significant reduction ( P < 0.05) in strike for 6 months. Results for strike incidence immediately after shearing and concentration of dicyclanil in the breech wool also suggested improvements in protection by delaying treatment for 6 weeks.
Conclusion   In most environments it should be possible to protect unmulesed sheep against breech strike with a carefully planned integrated control program incorporating strategically timed crutching, shearing and dicyclanil application. Delaying treatment with dicyclanil to at least 6 weeks after shearing or crutching increased the protection provided in comparison to treatment immediately after shearing.     

Effectiveness of α-tocopherol and selenium supplements in preventing lupinosis-associated myopathy in sheep

Objective To compare the effectiveness of combined selenium and α-tocopherol acetate treatments in preventing lupinosis-associated myopathy in sheep.
Design Measurement of plasma muscle and liver enzymes, and histopathological examination of muscle and liver in the treatment groups.
Procedure The treatments were: subcutaneous injections of selenomethionine and vitamin E (sc(SeM+E)) , an intraruminal selenium pellet and oral doses of vitamin E and intramuscular injections of selenomethionine combined with either oral doses of vitamin E (imSeM+orE) or intramuscular injections of vitamin E in an oily carrier. Another group received no supplements, while a control group was given selenium pellets on day 0 and fortnightly oral doses of vitamin E from day 0 to 72. To produce lupinosis-associated myopathy, the sheep were fed a diet low in vitamin E and given repeated injections of a crude extract of Diaphorthe toxica. Groups sc(SeM+E) and imSeM+orE were stressed by dosing with protected polyunsaturated fatty acids from day 56 onwards.
Results Lupinosis-associated myopathy was induced in all unsupplemented sheep. In these sheep the storage of Se increased and that of vitamin E decreased. The subcutaneous treatment was highly effective in preventing lupinosis-associated myopathy and also produced the highest vitamin E concentrations in plasma and liver. Supplemental vitamin E was more efficacious than supplemental Se. Concentrations of vitamin E in the livers of sheep given intramuscular vitamin E were higher than expected based on plasma concentrations. Oral doses of vitamin E proved the least effective method of increasing concentrations in liver. Lupinosis did not affect Se concentrations in liver or muscle.
Conclusion The sc(SeM+E) treatment is highly effective in preventing lupinosis-associated myopathy but needs to be further assessed when selenium and vitamin E are both limiting in the diet.     

Effect of plastic occlusive clips used as an alternative to mulesing on breech conformation, body weight and survival of Merino lambs

Objective To determine the effect of applying plastic clips to the breech and tail of lambs on the perineal and tail bare areas, breech wrinkle, dag (faecal) accumulation, urine stain, body weight and survival of lambs, compared with unclipped, unmulesed lambs and mulesed lambs. Method The study was conducted on five commercial wool‐growing farms in southern Australia. On each study site lambs (2–12‐weeks‐old) were divided into three groups: (1) unclipped, unmulesed control (tail dock only); (2) treated with clips; and (3) treated with the mules operation. Evaluations of effects, including visual scoring, bare area measurements and body weight, were performed before treatment and on or approximately days 30, 60, 90 and 180 after treatment. On each occasion, lambs were recorded as either present or absent to allow estimates of survival. Results The clip treatment increased the size of the perineal and tail bare areas compared with the unclipped, unmulesed control lambs (P < 0.05), although the increases were less than in mulesed lambs (P < 0.05). The clips reduced breech wrinkle, dag and urine stain to levels partway between those recorded in the unclipped, unmulesed controls and the mulesed lambs (P < 0.05). Clipped lambs weighed more than mulesed lambs after treatment (days 30–90 P < 0.001; day 180 P < 0.01) and had higher cumulative percentage survival to 90 days after treatment (P = 0.03). Conclusions The clips successfully modified the breech region of lambs, although the changes were less than with mulesing. The clips did not reduce the body weight of lambs, compared with the unclipped, unmulesed control lambs, and improved 90‐day cumulative percentage survival compared with mulesed lambs.     

A case of necrotizing fasciitis with septic shock in a cat caused by Acinetobacter baumannii

A 4-year-old, neutered female, domestic shorthair cat admitted to the animal hospital for recurrent constipation presumed to be due to post-traumatic injuries, went into shock with signs including fever and ataxia followed by stupor. On the fifth day of hospitalization, the cat developed severe, diffuse oedema of the ventral abdomen with multifocal to coalescing erythematous areas and small vesicle formation. The results of bacteriological cultures of liver, spleen and kidney specimens led to the diagnosis of Acinetobacter baumannii sepsis. Histopathological findings of skin samples taken during necropsy showed an extensive epidermal and dermal necrosis with septic vasculitis and numerous intralesional gram-negative bacteria. Detection of the bla(OXA-51-like) gene specific for A. baumannii by PCR, performed retrospectively on samples of the deep layers of the skin, confirmed the presence of A. baumannii also in the cutaneous lesions. To our knowledge this is the first report of a necrotizing fasciitis with septic shock in a cat caused by A. baumannii.     

Dermal necrosis caused by Pasteurella multocida infection in turkeys

Severe dermal necrosis caused by Pasteurella multocida Serotype 1 was diagnosed in three dressed turkey carcasses and two live turkeys from a commercial flock. The dressed carcasses were among several condemned at a processing plant. The isolate, P. multocida Serotype 1, produced progressive dermal necrosis when experimentally inoculated into injured skin of turkeys. The organism was reisolated from the dermal lesions. The turkey houses were found to be infested by mice; the skin injury and infection with P. multocida probably originated from mouse bites.     

The use of high-energy electrons to depilate the breech of sheep

The use of high-energy electrons for permanently depilating areas of sheep skin was evaluated. The most effective dose of electrons for depilation was 17.5Gy. Histological changes in skin treated at this dose were examined in one sheep over 18 months and in 5 sheep over 89 d. Effects of treatment on bodyweight gains and fleece growth were examined by comparing the productivity of a further 5 sheep treated on the breech with high-energy electrons, with that of conventionally mulesed sheep (n = 5) and untreated controls (n = 5). Electron treatment resulted in immediate death of cells in the germinative region of the wool follicle bulbs. Within 10 d of treatment the treated areas were completely depilated. Wool follicle shafts in the treated areas regressed rapidly towards the epidermis and remained quiescent for the whole trial (89 d). A sheep treated 18 months previously has remained largely depilated, although a few sparse fibres are present. Epidermal acanthosis and orthokeratosis were present at 26 d after treatment. The thickened stratum corneum then sloughed off, but the epidermis remained acanthotic for the entire trial. Sweat glands and most sebaceous glands were destroyed by the treatment and were replaced by fibrotic, avascular tissue in the dermis. In all other respects the external appearance of the electron-treated breech was similar to that of mulesed sheep. There were no apparent side-effects of treatment. Neither mulesing nor electron treatment altered weight gains or fleece growth rates.     

阿维菌素长效注射液(油悬剂)对绵羊痒螨的疗效试验

为了研究阿维菌素长效注射液(油悬剂)对绵羊痒螨疗效,将60只自然感染痒螨绵羊随机分为3组,每组20只。第1组每千克体重颈部皮下注射1 mg的阿维菌素油悬剂,第2组注射0.2 mg的阿维菌素普通注射液,第3组为不给药对照组。在给药后第7、14、21、28、35、42、49、56、63、70天对所有绵羊进行螨虫检查和计数,每天观察病变。结果表明:给自然感染痒螨的绵羊皮下注射1 mg/kg的阿维菌素长效注射液(油悬剂)可在给药后7 d内将痒螨完全杀灭,在给药后63 d内防止绵羊被痒螨再感染,其持效期远长于阿维菌素普通注射液(约为14 d)。     

Acute phase protein response, food intake, liveweight change and lesions following intrathoracic injection of yeast in sheep

Acute phase protein concentrations in blood, food intake and liveweight changes were compared in 10 sheep given intrathoracic injections of yeast and 10 control sheep over a period of 61 days. The yeast injections caused acute pleuritis and limited necrotising lung lesions which progressed to fibrous pleural adhesions and walled-off abscesses. The responses of ceruloplasmin, fibrinogen and haptoglobin were closely correlated (r = 0·87 to 0·91) in the yeast-injected sheep with peaks on days 5 or 7 after treatment (4, 4·6 and over 130 times control, respectively). Albumin concentration fell to a nadir of 89 per cent of control on day 12 after treatment. Depression of food intake was temporally related to the ‘positive’ acute phase protein responses with a nadir on day 5 after treatment (30 per cent of control). Liveweight showed a pronounced fall to five days after treatment and thereafter remained depressed relative to the controls for most of the experimental period. The data suggest that the ‘positive’ acute phase proteins may be useful indicators of production losses due to inflammatory diseases in sheep.     

The use of oral fluralaner for the treatment of feline generalised demodicosis: a case report

There is little agreement on the most effective and safest treatment for feline demodicosis. Protocols generally consist of long‐lasting therapy courses based on rinses, subcutaneous injections, oral drug administration or repeated spot‐on formulation and the efficacy of most of these is poorly documented. Many of these products have also been associated with adverse effects and may be difficult to administer in cats, leading to poor owner compliance and treatment failure. This case report describes the successful use of fluralaner in treating a generalised form of demodicosis caused by Demodex cati in an adult cat that was probably triggered by chronic glucocorticoid administration. After a single oral dose of 28 mg/kg fluralaner, negative skin scrapings were obtained within one month and clinical cure within two months. No side effects were observed. Larger studies are needed to evaluate the efficacy of fluralaner in treating feline generalised demodicosis.     

Clinicopathological studies on facial eczema outbreak in sheep in Southwest Turkey

After very hot summer, 22 sheep from 5 different flocks consisting of approximately 150-200 animals each were diagnosed with facial eczema in September 2005, in southwest Turkey. Photophobia, corneal opacity, severe ulcers of the facial skin, especially localized around the eyes and mouth, and 3% mortality were the most prominent clinical symptoms. GGT levels of the animals were very high and varying between 261- 328 U/l. While the activities of ALT and total bilirubin were elevated and AST was normal in affected sheep. Total bilirubin level was higher than normal. Seven of the 22 sheep were euthanatized and necropsy was performed on all of these animals. Severe icterus, hepatomegaly, enlarged gallbladder, congestion of mesenteric vessels were the common necropsy findings. Histopathological changes of the liver included necrosis of the hepatocytes, cholangiohepatitis characterized by mononuclear inflammatory cell infiltrate in the portal area and mild to severe fibrosis around bile ducts. A diagnosis of sporidesmin toxicosis was made based on the histopathology of the livers, the elevation in liver enzymes, and the development of cutaneous lesions consistent with photosensitization and high spore counts in the ruminal contents. Surviving sheep were treated with procaine penicillin + dihidrostreptomycin sulfate, multivitamin complexes and flunixin meglumine. Additionally, zinc sulphate was also given at a dose of 6 gr per 100 lt drinking water for 28 days. All treated sheep recovered. Pasture spore counts were between 96,300- 267,500 spores/g grass.     

Effects of different roughage sources and feeding levels on adipogenesis of ovine adipocytes

The objective of the present study was to conduct an adipogenic evaluation of different roughage sources and feeding levels during ruminant adipocyte differentiation in vitro. Six wether sheep were divided into a timothy hay feeding group (TFG, n = 3) and an Italian ryegrass straw feeding group (IFG, n = 3). The sheep were fed high‐roughage (HR), medium roughage (MR) and low‐roughage (LR) diets in a one‐way layout design each over a 6‐day period. Sheep serum samples collected on the last day of each dietary treatment were added to an adipogenic induction medium for differentiation of preadipocytes derived from sheep subcutaneous adipose tissue. The cytoplasmic lipid accumulations in the TFG serum‐treated preadipocytes were significantly higher than those of the IFG‐serum treated preadipocytes on day 12. Messenger RNA expression of CCAAT/enhancer‐binding protein (C/EBP)‐α, C/EBP‐β, C/EBP‐δ, fatty‐acid‐binding protein (aP2) and stearoyl‐coenzyme A desaturase (SCD) were regulated by each serum treatment. This study shows that different roughage source diets and roughage‐to‐concentrate ratio diets can regulate adipocyte differentiation via ruminant blood composition.     

Welfare consequences of mulesing of sheep

Mulesing is traditionally performed on approximately 80% of Merino wool-producing sheep in Australia. Mulesing produces a stress response that persists for 24 to 48 hours. Behavioural changes indicative of pain and discomfort resolve within 24 and 48 hours, respectively. Reductions in weight gain may persist for 14 days. The acute stress response to mulesing has been shown to be similar to that produced by shearing, castration and mild flystrike, but mulesing has a longer duration of response (24 to 48 hours) than shearing (1 hour) or knife castration (8 to 24 hours), whereas flystrike response persists for the duration of infection. Theoretically, if mulesing were not used, with Merino sheep of existing genetics, increased chemical use and flock inspections could keep flystrike rates to approximately equivalent to present levels in some production systems. Increased handling events for chemical preventative application would represent a mild stressor for sheep, but cumulatively not more than that of mulesing. If producers were able and prepared to sufficiently increase resources into alternative anti-flystrike methods, then the welfare of Merino sheep would probably be equivalent or better to that of today. If constraints such as property size or finances dictate a sub-optimal level of flystrike prevention and treatment, then animal welfare will unquestionably be worse. The result of that equation would depend on individual flock managers, the physical characteristics of their production system, the profitability of their business, and seasonal variations in flystrike risk. It is likely that there would be some occasions when flystrike would increase. This highlights the need for alternative strategies, such as genetic selection, to reduce the susceptibility of Australian Merino sheep to flystrike.     

The Preventive Effect of Nicotinic Acid on Carbon Tetrachloride Toxicity in Sheep

The blood glucose response following the intravenous injection of butyric acid, 2.5 mM/kg, was studied in normal and carbon tetrachloride poisoned sheep. In normal sheep there was a rapid increase in blood glucose. Carbon tetrachloride greatly reduced the glucose response. In animals pretreated with nicotinic acid, 50 mg/kg, on the day before carbon tetrachloride administration, the glucose response was not altered. When a larger dose of nicotinic acid, 100 mg/kg, was given simultaneously with carbon tetrachloride, the glucose response was reduced more than after only carbon tetrachloride. Nicotinic acid alone at the dose of 100 mg/kg reduced the glucose rise somewhat more than carbon tetrachloride. There was a good agreement between the glucose rise following butyric acid and the glycogen content of the liver. It thus seemed clear that butyric acid has a glycogenolytic effect when given intravenously. Carbon tetrachloride caused severe necrosis and fatty changes in the liver. These pathological changes were reduced by pretreating the animals with 50 mg/kg of nicotinic acid. The larger dose of nicotinic acid, 100 mg/kg, caused a diffuse degeneration of the liver cells and a complete disappearence of glycogen. All liver injuries were followed by a rise in serum OCT.     

Efficacy of albendazole for prevention of fascioliasis in sheep

Daily doses of albendazole administered as a premix in the feed for 35 days were effective in preventing Fasciola hepatica infections in 17 sheep in three groups: 5 mg/kg/day (6 sheep) was 100% effective; 3 mg/kg/day (5 sheep) was 98% effective; and 1 mg/kg/day (6 sheep) was 42% effective. Infective cysts were given daily for 5 days during the first week of treatment, treatment was continued an additional 28 days, and sheep were necropsied 14 weeks after final cyst inoculation. There were no visible lesions in any livers of sheep given albendazole at the rate of 5 mg/kg/day or in three of five livers of sheep dosed at the rate of 3 mg/kg/day. Sheep treated with albendazole had a mean weight gain of 2.7 kg, 4.0 kg, and 4.0 kg greater than the controls for the dosages of 1, 3, and 5 mg/kg/day, respectively. Determination of bile duct damage by measurement of serum gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase activity at 9 weeks after final cyst inoculation revealed increases of 3.0X, 1.0X, and 1.1X for the dosages of 1, 3, and 5 mg/kg/day, respectively, and 2.3X for the control, as compared with 7 weeks after final cyst inoculation.