Retrospective evaluation of xylazine/halothane anesthesia in 125 cattle

A retrospective morbidity and mortality study was carried out on 125 case records of cattle involving xylazine/halothane anesthesia at the Ontario Veterinary College, Guelph between May 1979 and February 1983.     

Acetaminophen toxicosis in a cat

A seven month old domestic shorthaired male cat was presented with a known history of acetaminophen ingestion. Clinical findings included icterus, depression, hypothermia, tachypnea and pronounced edema of the head and neck. Treatment was aimed at providing substrate to assist in conjugation of the drug and reversing methemoglobinemia. Administration of oral acetylcysteine, ascorbic acid and IV fluids was insufficient in this case due to a delay in initiation of treatment. The salient postmortem findings were icterus, subcutaneous and pulmonary edema and evidence of hemolysis in the liver, spleen and urinary tract.     

Plasma cell pododermatitis in a cat

Plasma cell pododermatitis, an uncommon disease of unknown etiology, is described in a six year old male domestic short-haired cat. The cat was referred with a history of lameness associated with swelling, softness and ulceration of the foot pads. The history suggested a seasonal occurrence of the condition. The dermis and subcutis of the foot pads were infiltrated by inflammatory cells which were mainly plasma cells. The large number of plasma cells present in the lesions suggests an immunological basis for the condition.     

Torsion of abdominal organs in sows: a report of 36 cases

Necropsy records of 36 sows with torsion of abdominal organs involving individually the stomach, the spleen, a liver lobe or the intestine were reviewed for the years 1970 to 1983, and the age, the clinical signs and the gross lesions were recorded. These acute abdominal accidents were characterized clinically by sudden death. Dry sows from large breeding units were affected. Twenty-six cases were diagnosed between January 1981 and December 1983 while only ten cases had been seen between 1970 and 1980. Gastric torsion was the most common condition (40% of the cases) and the other three conditions were equally represented (20% each). Management practises that could be responsible for the apparent increase in occurrence of this problem are discussed.     

A review of cancer chemotherapy for pet animals

A review of the principles of cancer chemotherapy for pet animals is presented. The various pharmacological classes of antineoplastic drugs are described with specific references to those drugs that have been widely used in veterinary medicine.     

Treatment of a strandling whale (Kogia breviceps)

A stranded young pygmy sperm whale was nursed for four days in a pool, fed an artificial diet via a stomach tube and injected intramuscularly with antibiotics and corticosteroids. Initially unable to maintain her balance or to swim, she showed progressive improvement and by the third day could swim and dive quite strongly. Early on the fifth day her condition rapidly worsened and she died. An autopsy revealed extensive deep bruising in the head and mid-abdominal regions consistent with injuries sustained during the stranding.     

The pathogenesis of excessive wear in the deciduous teeth of sheep

The teeth and various supporting and ancillary tissues were examined post mortem from two flocks of sheep, one of which had previously shown high deciduous incisor wear. Sheep were killed in groups selected on clinical signs at equivalent ages from birth to 116 weeks of age. At the end of this time the lengths of clinical crowns of the remaining deciduous incisor teeth in the high wear flock were not measurable, whereas the other flock had up to 5.5 mm in visible crown. Using the cingulum as a marker, measurements were made from extracted teeth of the attrition of the crown and size of the root. The tooth root did not grow substantially longer after the 13th week of the sheep;s life. Wear facets were just visible in some sheep at six weeks. More rapid wear occurred three times in the high wear flock. The first of these was relatively small and occurred between the 13th and 27th week of age in I1 and I2. The second was larger and occurred between the 38th and 57th week of age in the winter/spring period. A third period of wear, which was not measured from the cingulum, because this structure had by then been worn away, was seen in the remaining deciduous teeth between the ages of 91 and 110 weeks of age, i.e., during the second winter and spring. In the low wear flock the first of these periods of wear did not occur, the second was of shorter duration and smaller size, and the third equivocal. Eruption of the teeth after the 6th week was principally passive. There was no difference in the degree of wear of the molar teeth from the two flocks. Histological examination showed that the wear was compensated for by the deposition of reparative dentine in the pulp cavity. This usually gave the appearance of an ordered process. However, when wear was excessively rapid, a different, less orderly form of reparative dentine was laid down. In a few cases the reparative process was not fast enough, and a connection developed between the mouth and the pulp causing pulpitis. There was no histological evidence that the supportive tissues of the teeth, or the upper dental pad, contributed to the excessive wear.