Otter Lutra lutra L. mortality and marine oil pollution

Following an oil spill at Sullom Voe Oil Terminal, Shetland, at least 13 otters died. Post-mortems on five corpses showed that they had died of haemorrhagic gastroenteropathy, associated with ingested oil. The primary cause of oil ingestion seems to have been grooming of the fur. A survey of the polluted coasts revealed that otters were still present throughout most of the area.     

Extensive resection and anastomosis of the descending (small) colon in a mare following strangulation by a mesenteric lipoma

A 17-year-old Quarter Horse, Arabian crossbred mare presented with a history of having had abdominal pain for 2 d. At surgery there was 2.6 m of descending colon strangulated within the pedicle of a mesenteric lipoma. The lipoma was resected and the descending colon appeared viable so was replaced, and the mare recovered from anaesthesia. Post-operatively, the mare failed to stabilise so was taken back to surgery. There was 2 m of infarcted descending colon which was resected and anastomosed. A drain and stainless steel stay sutures were incorporated into the ventral suture line. Post-operatively the ventral wound became infected but was resolved with therapy. The diagnosis, surgical and post-operative management and outcome are discussed.     

Effects of drill coulter design and soil moisture status on emergence of wheat seedlings

A field experiment is described where three contrasting direct drilling coulters (seed groove openers) were used for a total of twelve drillings at fortnightyly intervals. Wheat was drilled into an undisturbed silt loam soil in a temperate climate during a spring-summer-autumn period in the southern hemisphere. An experimental chisel coulter promoted significantly larger counts of seedling emergence than a triple disc coulter in two of the drillings, and was also superior to a hoe coulter in one of the drillings. In very dry conditions, where in 3 weeks no seedling emergence occurred with any of the coulters, sub-surface seedlings in the grooves made by the chisel coulter had survived in a further two of the drillings than was the case with the triple disc and hoe coulters.These results confirmed that the biological effect of the coulters was largely a function of the physical geometry of the grooves which determined their ability to retain and utilize the liquid and vapour moisture present in the seed micro-environment.     

A review of feline serum protein electrophoresis

A review of the current literature available on feline serum proteins is presented. Early studies concentrated on comparative aspects of species variations in the electrophoretic pattern. The feline electrophoretogram was divided into five basic regions: albumin, alpha-1, alpha-2, beta and gamma. Different subdivisions of these areas were recognized depending on the support medium used. Current papers have compared the relative migration distances of each globulin peak to the migration of albumin. This "Rf" value enables reliable peak identification. To date, no data exists identifying the individual proteins responsible for the peaks in the alpha and beta regions. The only feline globulin to be studied is haptolobin; however its precise location on the electrophoretic strip was not identified.     

Bordetella bronchiseptica and toxigenic type D Pasteurella multocida as agents of severe atrophic rhinitis of swine

Bordetella bronchiseptica and toxigenic type-D Pasteurella multocida were cultured from pigs in each of five herds diagnosed as having severe atrophic rhinitis (AR). B. bronchiseptica alone, P. multocida alone, or both organisms isolated from four herds were inoculated intranasally into 1-week-old gnotobiotic pigs which were necropsied 4 weeks post-inoculation (PI). Nasal turbinate atrophy in B. bronchiseptica-inoculated pigs was moderate to severe, while P. multocida-inoculated pigs had slight to severe atrophy. Pigs inoculated with both organisms had moderate to complete turbinate atrophy. P. multocida was reisolated at necropsy from all pigs receiving the organism except those having no turbinate damage. B. bronchiseptica and P. multocida from a fifth herd were simultaneously inoculated into six naturally farrowed 6-day-old SPF pigs. Necropsy performed 4 weeks PI revealed severe to complete turbinate atrophy. Nasal turbinates were normal for control pigs in both experiments.     

SnakeMap: four years of experience with a national small animal snake envenomation registry

SnakeMap is a national cloud-based, veterinary snakebite registry. It was designed to prospectively collect data of the clinical circumstances and temporospatial information on cases of snake envenomation in dogs and cats. We herein introduce the project and summarise the data from the first 4 years of SnakeMap. The registry is a veterinary community-based online database allowing case entry from veterinary hospitals across Australia. Registry data comprise hospital characteristics, patient characteristics, envenoming snake type, treatment and outcome variables, including time and geolocation of the snake bite. We present summative information on select key variables from the SnakeMap registry (1 July 2015 to 30 June 2019). Twenty-eight hospitals from 6 states/territories entered 624 cases into the registry, including 419 dogs (67%) and 205 cats (33%). Bite time was available in 216 animals of which 90 (42%) were reported to be bitten in the 3 hours between 03:00 pm and 05:59 pm; median bite to presentation interval was 60 (interquartile range [IQR] 30, 211) minutes in dogs and 95 (IQR 41, 238) minutes in cats. Bites occurred in the owner's yard in 356 dogs (85%) and 53 cats (26%). A snake venom detection kit was used in 172 cases (28%) and antivenom was administered in 523 cases (85%). Most animals (n = 534, 88%) survived to discharge (median hospitalisation of 25 [IQR 16, 62] hours). SnakeMap effectively collects relevant clinical data from dogs and cats with presumed snake bite and provides locally specific information on the epidemiology of snake envenomation in small animals.     

Depredation by harbor seal and spiny dogfish in a Georges Bank gillnet fishery

Abstract Depredation can have economic, social and ecological impacts by decreasing fishery landings and threatening marine predator populations through increased risk of entanglement. This investigation quantified the loss of landings attributed to harbour seal, Phoca vitulina L., and spiny dogfish, Squalus acanthias L., depredation in the Georges Bank, Massachusetts, USA gillnet fishery. Approximately 1361 kg (2.38%) of fish was discarded from a total possible catch weight of nearly 57 300 kg because it was unsalable following depredation. Spiny dogfish accounted for 1134 kg (1.98%), and harbour seal accounted for 227 kg (0.40%) of discards. This represented an estimated US$2250 loss in profits from a total possible catch value of almost US$61 800, signifying a 3.64% market‐value loss during the assessment period. These results suggest that discarding due to harbour seal and spiny dogfish depredation results in a relatively small market loss to fishers, although additional information and research is needed before this can be confirmed. This study is the first on this subject in the fishery and provides baseline information on depredation rates that could be useful if harbour seal and spiny dogfish populations continue to increase.     

Serologic studies of bovine respiratory syncytial virus in Minnesota cattle

Serum antibody titers to bovine respiratory syncytial virus were determined for 559 cattle. Serum samples were obtained through the Minnesota State-Federal Brucellosis Laboratory and were collected over a 1-year period. Results of this study revealed an antibody prevalence of 65.5% to bovine respiratory syncytial virus. The distribution of antibody titers is presented, as well as analysis of titers based on breed, sex, and age of the cattle.     

Epidemiological studies of pig diseases: 1. Use of French protocols for risk factor assessment to predict the health status of Australian herds

Objective To determine in Australian pig herds the accuracy of French protocols for risk factor assessment.
Procedure Data on health indicators and risk factors were collected for three syndromes, 'pre-weaning diarrhoea', 'post-weaning diarrhoea' and 'respiratory problems', using the French protocols. The protocols were used on 118 occasions in 32 Western Australian pig herds during 3 years (1988 to 1991).
Results There was a wide variation in pre-weaning performance, for example growth rate was 107 to 273 g/day (< 200 g/day in 33% of herds). Respiratory lesions at weaning were associated with poor pre-weaning performance. Post-weaning (21 days after weaning) growth rate was 114 to 408 g/day (< 250 g/day in 54% of herds). In the grower herds, 91% of herds had pneumonia, and growth rate was 439 to 625 g/day (< 550 g/day in 54% of herds). Pleurisy as well as pneumonia was associated with reduced growth rate. The risk factor most closely associated with respiratory health status was air volume per pig.
Conclusion Risk factors were most accurate at predicting the health status in post-weaning problems. A weaning weight of at least 7.9 kg and weaning age of 30 days optimised weaner performance. Stocking densities and shed designs providing at least 3 m³ air volume and 0.6 m² floor space per pig throughout the growing phase should be considered for an improved respiratory health status. Australian pig sheds often do not provide a satisfactory environment for optimum health. The technique of risk factor assessment as an aid to the maintenance of health in pig herds is applicable in Australia, but further research is necessary to determine the most important Australian risk factors.