Geriatric nutrition

In recent decades, veterinary medicine has become more successful in prolonging the healthy, useful lives of pets. As a result, the practitioner spends a greater part of each practice day caring for the geriatric animal, both healthy and unhealthy. Because of their longevity, older pets are typically regular family members, with owners who seek the finest health care possible for their pets. The practice of geriatric medicine most properly should begin not when the dog or cat reaches some specific "golden" age, but rather when the wiggly, robust puppy or kitten receives its first examination. Like all parts of a sound preventive program, geriatric nutrition best follows from a well-considered juvenile and adult nutrition program. Furthermore, once it becomes senior, the "well" geriatric is as much a candidate for a diet designed especially to accommodate old age changes as is his unhealthy contemporary. In fact, evidence suggests that appropriate dietary management of the healthy, but often subclinical, patient may help postpone the signs of dysfunction and increase quality and length of life. A knowledge of the most significant nutrients and the impact of each on aging systems is now, and will become increasingly more, important to the progressive, skillful veterinarian.     

Bilirubin excretion and bile flow in fed and fasted Brazilian squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus)

Fasted Brazilian squirrel monkeys (BrSMs) exhibited slightly higher serum bilirubin levels (0.30±0.05 mg/dl) than others in the fed state (0.13±0.01). The mean liver weight was 50% lower following a 22 h fast. The rate of bile flow was unaffected by fasting and averaged 13.8 l/min/kg and 47.5 l/min/100g liver in six BrSMs. No significant difference in mean bilirubin excretion/min was observed on a body weight basis following fasting. When the mean rate of bilirubin excretion was calculated as a function of liver weight, a two-fold higher rate was present in fasted monkeys, but only at the p=0.06 level of statistical significance. From data collected in this and earlier studies, it would appear that BrSMs represent the best animals studied to date to serve as experimental controls in comparative studies with Bovilian squirrel monkeys which exhibit a Gilbert-like syndrome.     

An osteodystrophy apparently caused by vitamin D deficiency in growing pigs

An osteodystrophy with features of both rickets and fibrous osteodystrophy was diagnosed in growing pigs housed indoors and fed on a diet deficient in vitamin D. Affected pigs were severely lame and preferred to remain recumbent. At necropsy, the long bones had reduced breaking strength and in one five-month-old pig the articular surfaces of both proximal humeri were indented due to collapse of subchondral bone. Microscopic changes in the bones included prominent osteoclastic activity in the proximal metaphyses, variable myelofibrosis, trabecular microfractures, and focal thickening of the hypertrophic zone in some growth plates. Treatment consisted of an injection of Vitamin D3, addition of dicalcium phosphate to the diet for 18 days and long-term supplementation of the diet with fat-soluble vitamins. This is the first report of an osteodystrophic disease in pigs in New Zealand.     

Organochlorine insecticide problems in livestock

1. Antidotal therapy for acute OC intoxications is symptomatic and supportive. Use sedatives to control convulsions and AC to adsorb any pesticide remaining in the gut, and wash topical exposures. 2. Published kinetics should be applied to field situations with caution. In general, residues decline relatively quickly immediately following the last exposure; thereafter, the rate slows considerably. The elimination-rate constant and, hence, the half-life of any given OC is dependent on many variables that usually are not known under field conditions. This fact may result in serious errors if literature values are relied on too heavily in predicting the outcome of "natural" contamination. As a rule of thumb, elimination data derived from animals experimentally fed to plateau concentrations may be regarded as fairly conservative for such purposes, if the contaminated animals are maintained in a normal fashion. Probably the least risky method of predicting return to marketability is using frequent samples, taken at regular intervals (for example, 1 to 2 weeks) during the first month after last exposure, to adjust literature values. 3. Residues from larger dosages and shorter exposures tend to be smaller in proportion to dose and are eliminated more quickly than those resulting from longer exposures and smaller doses. 4. Activated charcoal is of universal benefit only if given immediately after exposure. 5. Pharmaceutical modifiers of xenobiotic metabolism such as phenobarbital are of very limited value. The particular type and amount of residual OC and the potential economic benefit of therapy should be considered thoroughly before undertaking such therapy. In most cases, the expense won't be justified. 6. Mineral oil increases the fecal excretion of some OC. Fecal excretion, however, is so small in relation to total body burdens that even a several-fold increase may not be useful economically except when residue concentrations are low to start with. 7. Nutritional strategies have the advantage of being very cheap. Practitioners should remember, however, that tissue concentrations actually may increase as body fat decreases. The costs of maintaining animals for an extra 6 to 10 months should be considered before undertaking such an effort.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

Pathologic consequences of a severe influenza outbreak (swine virus A/H1N1) under natural conditions in the non-immune sow at the beginning of pregnancy

Pathological consequences of a severe outbreak of swine influenza (H1N1 virus) in the non immune sow at the beginning of pregnancy, under natural conditions. A sudden acute outbreak of fever, depression, anorexia and coughing in a group of nulliparous sows from a herd that was currently under epidemiological investigation lead to build a particular disposal of observation. The clinical signs were daily recorded including rectal temperature. Blood was taken from the sows at the beginning of the troubles and 3 weeks later for the detection of Aujesky's disease, coronavirus TGE-like, Influenza viruses A/H1N1 and A/H3N2 and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae. Viral detection was attempted from nasal swabs and aborted fetuses during the acute phase. The clinical study showed fever reaching near 41 degrees C on most of the pigs and lasting usually from 2 to 5 days. The diagnosis of Influenza (virus swine H1N1) was established both on serology (massive seroconversion) and on the detection of the virus from the nasal swabs and from an aborted fetus. The control of the lungs of sows "not in pig" and culled showed extended lesions of bronchopneumonia and Pasteurella multocida was found. The technical consequences of this severe outbreak of Influenza on reproduction were mainly important at the beginning of pregnancy. Over 13 sows inseminated less than 1 week before the outbreak, only 3 farrowed (respectively 5.5 and 12 piglets); 7 returned to oestrus and 3 "not a pig" at 21 days (echotomography) did not show signs of heat and were culled. Over 8 pregnant sows (1 month of pregnancy), 6 farrowed normal litters and total embryonic resorption occurred in 2 sows. Over 18 pregnant sows (more than 45 days gestation) one aborted.     

Selenium, vitamin E and polyunsaturated fatty acid concentrations in goat kids with and without nutritional myodegeneration

Mean selenium and vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) concentrations in the liver, myocardium and skeletal muscle of nine goat kids with nutritional myodegeneration (NMD) were significantly lower than those in a group of nine kids dying from other causes. Each of the 18 kids was from a different property in the southern half of the North Island. The polyunsaturated fatty acid composition of the liver, myocardium and skeletal muscle was not significantly different between the two groups, but the overall level of peroxidisable polyunsaturated fatty acids appeared high in both groups. A further 21 kids with confirmed NMD and live 'controls', submitted as routine cases to Palmerston North Animal Health Laboratory, were included with the above 18 kids in a comparison of liver selenium and alpha-tocopherol concentrations. Kids with NMD had liver selenium concentrations ranging from 170-1100 (mean = 380) nmol/kg and alpha-tocopherol from 0.7-11.0 (mean =2.2) micromol/kg. In control kids, the liver selenium concentration ranged from 530-4300 (mean = 1220) nmol/kg and a-tocopherol from 1.7-14.0 (mean = 5.6) pmollkg. Although these ranges overlapped, the results suggest that liver selenium concentrations <500 nmol/kg and alpha-tocopherol concentrations <2.5 micromol/kg should be regarded as deficient. Liver selenium concentrations from 500-1100 nmol/kg and alpha-tocopherol concentrations from 2.5-10 micromol/kg should be considered marginal. Goat kids appear to require more selenium than lambs or calves which may explain the higher prevalence of NMD in kids. In some cases, however, the disease is associated with low alpha-tocopherol suggesting that supplementation with selenium alone may not always be sufficient.     

Neurotoxic syndrome of sheep due to the ingestion of plants of the Mediterranean scrub: clinical, histopathological, histochemical and ultrastructural observations

A severe neurological disorder was observed during a very dry season, in sheep pasturing on land with mediterranean vegetation. During the crisis, lasting 5-20", ataxia and convulsions were the main clinical signs. Brain congestion, spongy appearance of the liver, interstitial nephritis and hyperpigmentation of visceral lymph nodes were the most important macroscopic lesions. Histopathological, histochemical and ultrastructural findings confirmed liver and kidney lesions and showed considerable neurovisceral storage of lipofuscin. Although further toxicological and experimental studies are needed to elucidate the origin of the disease, the Authors attribute the outbreak of the neurological syndrome to the ingestion of a neurotoxin containing plant.     

The cervical vertebral column of horses--a clinico-radiological study

For various anamnestic reasons the cervical vertebral column of 78 horses was examined radiologically. Statistical comparisons showed that male "warmbloods" were more frequently affected than was expected. Our horses were older than comparable animals in the international literature. Independently of their history the radiologic diagnosis of "cervical spondylarthrosis" was established in 56 horses. Arthrosis and other conditions were clinically manifested by spinal ataxia (44 horses) or mechanical impairment of the neck's mobility (21 horses). 10 of the arthrotic patients had synovial cysts causing compression of the spinal cord. 79 percent of all dorsal intervertebral arthrotic joints were found in the caudal column (C6/7 to C7/Th1). With 38 percent, C6/7 was the most frequently affected joint. Clinical and radiological findings could be compared with patho-anatomic results in 29 horses. The correlation was satisfactory.