Acute Gastrointestinal Disease in 27 New World Camelids: Clinical and Surgical Findings

Objective—To describe clinical and surgical findings from New World camelids with acute gastrointestinal disease.
Study Design—Retrospective study.
Animal Population—20 llamas and 7 alpacas.
Methods—Camelids were grouped based on surgical lesions. Clinical and surgical findings were compared between groups and between surviving and nonsurviving camelids.
Results—Twelve of 27 initial celiotomies and 3 of 4 repeat celiotomies were successful. Death occurred from euthanasia during surgery (nine camelids), peritonitis or sepsis (five), aspiration pneumonia (one), and respiratory distress (one). Survival was lowest after celiotomy for proximal obstruction (3 of 10 camelids), ruptured viscus (0 of 4), and necrotizing enteritis (0 of 2) and highest after celiotomy for distal obstruction (10 of 13) and septic peritonitis without ruptured viscus (2 of 2). Before surgery, camelids with proximal obstruction had significantly lower ( P < .05) serum chloride concentrations (median, 97 mEq/L) than those with distal obstruction (median, 109 mEq/L) or ruptured viscus (median, 117 mEq/L). Serum bicarbonate concentration also was highest (median, 34.6 mEq/L) and often greater than 28 mEq/L in camelids with proximal obstruction. Camelids with distal obstruction had significantly lower ( P < .05) nucleated cell counts in peritoneal fluid (median, 700 cells/μL) than those with ruptured viscus (median, 20,600 cells/μL) or septic peritonitis (median, 88,300 cells/μL).
Conclusions—Camelids with proximal obstruction often had hypochloremic metabolic alkalosis. Camelids with distal obstruction had less metabolic derangement and tissue compromise and a higher survival rate.
Clinical Relevance—Awareness of the characteristics of the various types of acute gastrointestinal disease in camelids will augment veterinarians' ability to diagnose and treat these disorders.     

Labor Market of a U.S.-Japanese Automobile Joint Venture

Starting with a brief location analysis of the plant site, in this paper we analyze the characteristics and geography of the labor market for a U.S.- Japanese automobile joint venture. Based on a survey of the firm's employees, we show that the labor market is two-tiered and stretches over many states in the United States. There are clear differences in skills, gender and socio-demographic characteristics between short and long distance movers, and American workers are willing and able to adapt to technology and work practices originating in a different culture. Most employees hold positive opinions of the work environment and practices at the plant, Japanese influence in the U.S. economy and U.S.-Japanese economic relations, despite perceiving Japan as an economic threat to the United States. We conclude with some policy implications of our findings and an agenda for future research.     

MICROBIAL POPULATIONS AND NITROGEN IN SOIL GROWING CONSECUTIVE CEREAL CROPS INFECTED WITH TAKE-ALL

Annually, for the past 12 years, a consecutive cereal-cropping sequence was begun. During 1969–72 soil was collected from plots with similar fertilizer treatments, but with different sequences of crops. In 1971 and 1972 wheat seedling bioassays showed that take-all disease became miximal after two or three crops, decreased to the fifth or sixth crop and then remained fairly constant in the‘take-all decline’state. The sequence with maximum disease had most NH₄⁺ -N and least NO₃^- -N in the rhizosphere soil in spring 1972, but there were no similar relationships in bulk soil in either of 2 years. Soil and rhizoplane populations of ammonifying and denitrifying bacteria were notably smaller in autumn 1970 and 1971 in short cereal sequences (2-5 yr.) than in the longer sequences. After γ-irradiating or autoclaving irradiated soils, all sequences contained much NH₄⁺ -N and although disease developing from added inoculum differed among soils, it did not follow the take-all decline pattern. Diffusate from sterilized soil favoured growth of the pathogen (Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici) least when it originated from the sequence that supported maximum disease.     

SOME EFFECTS OF FERTILIZERS AND FARMYARD MANURE ON THE ORGANIC PHOSPHORUS IN SOILS

The amounts of P applied cumulatively to a neutral arable soil (pH 7.1–7. in 0.01M CaCl₂) at Rothamsted, as farmyard manure, alone or with superphosphate, which were converted to organic P in 100 years ranged from 18 to 44 μg P/g of soil (0–23 cm). Superphosphate alone (3300 kg P/ha) slightly lessened the total organic P in the soil. Neither farmyard manure nor super-phosphate significantly changed the amounts (38 to 42 μg P/g) of inositol penta- and hexaphosphate in these soils. In the surface layers (0–7.5 cm) of soils from permanent grassland at Rothamsted, superphosphate (3370kg P/ha) increased organic P by 134 μg P/g at pH 4.5 and 19 μg P/g at pH 6.5, about 6 and 1 per cent respectively of the P remaining from superphosphate applied cumulatively since 1858. In the sub-surface layers (7.5–23 cm) superphosphate increased organic P by 93 μg P/g at pH 4.5 and 62 μg P/g at pH 6.2, about 18 and 10 per cent respectively of the P remaining from superphosphate. The sum of inositol penta- and hexaphosphates accounted for 32 per cent at pH 4.5 and 21 per cent at pH 6.5 of the increases in organic P in the surface layers and 45 per cent and 26 per cent in the sub-surface layers at pH 4.5 and 6.5 respectively. Superphosphate (1260–2100 kg P/ha) applied intermittently or cumulatively increased total organic P by 19 to 52 μg P/g and inositol penta- and hexaphosphates by 13 to 17 μg P/g in acid tea soils (pH 3.2–3.4) from Georgia, U.S.S.R. Rock phosphate (510–1020kg P/ha) applied cumulatively had no effect on either the total organic P or the inositol P in acid tea soils (PH 3.6–3.7) from Ceylon.     

Electrohydraulic Lithotripsy for Treatment of a Cystic Calculus in a Mare

Electrohydraulic lithotripsy performed through a nephroscope was used to fragment an ammonium urate, triple phosphate calculus in a mare. Calculus fragments were lavaged from the bladder. The mare recovered uneventfully and returned to work on the eighth postoperative day.