Outcome of limb amputations in wapiti: 13 cases (1995-2001).

The object of this investigation was to determine the outcome of limb amputation in wapiti. Medical records of 13 wapiti that underwent limb amputation were reviewed to determine age, weight, sex, injury preceding amputation, limb amputated, amputation location, length of hospital stay, complications, and outcome. Ages ranged from 3 months to 8 years and weights from 70 kg to 280 kg. All animals were female. Eleven animals sustained catastrophic long bone fractures prior to amputation. Five animals had front limb amputations and 8 had hind limb amputations. Of these animals, 1 with a front limb amputaiton and 5 with hind limb amputations survived. Postsurgical inability to stand is associated with hospitalization of > 1 day. Of the 13 wapiti reviewed, 5 with hind limb amputations have produced and reared offspring. Hind limb amputation can be considered a viable alternative to euthanasia when catastrophic orthopedic injuries occur in female wapiti.     

Key Factors Affecting Reproductive Success of Thoroughbred Mares and Stallions on a Commercial Stud Farm

To evaluate factors contributing to fertility of thoroughbred mares, data from 3743 oestrous periods of 2385 mares were collected on a large thoroughbred farm in Ireland. Fourteen stallions (mean age 8.3 years; range 4–15 years) had bred 2385 mares (mean age 9.4 years; range 3–24 years). Maiden mares accounted for 12%, mares with a foal at foot for 64%, and barren, slipped or rested mares for 24% of the total. The mean pregnancy rate per cycle was 67.8% (68.6% in year 1 and 66.9% in year 2). Backward stepwise multivariable logistic regression analysis was utilized to develop two models to evaluate mare factors, including mare age, reproductive status, month of foaling, dystocia, month of cover, foal heat, cycle number, treatments, walk‐in status and stallion factors including stallion identity, stallion age, shuttle status, time elapsed between covers and high stallion usage on the per cycle pregnancy rate and pregnancy loss. Old age (p < 0.001) and cover within 20 days post‐partum (p < 0.003) were associated with lowered pregnancy rates. High mare age (p < 0.05) and barren, slipped or rested reproductive status (p = 0.05) increased the likelihood of pregnancy loss. Uterine inflammation or infection, if appropriately treated, did not affect fertility. Only high usage of stallions (used more than 21 times in previous week) was associated with lowered (p = 0.009) pregnancy rates. However, shuttle stallions were more likely to have increased (p = 0.035) pregnancy survival, perhaps reflecting a bias in stallion selection. In conclusion, mare age exerted the greatest influence on fertility; nonetheless, thoroughbreds can be effectively managed to achieve high reproductive performance in a commercial setting.     

The effects of vaccination of Merino ewes with an attenuated Australian bluetongue virus serotype 23 at different stages of gestation

SUMMARY A cell culture attenuated Australian bluetongue virus serotype 23 (BLU23) prototype vaccine was assessed for its effects on pregnant Merino sheep. Seventy-six ewes were vaccinated at 5 different stages of gestation, and the failure to lamb at term was as follows: 35 to 43 days of gestation, 20/36 (56%); 57 to 64 days of gestation, 3/10 (30%); 81 to 88 days of gestation, 3/10 (30%); 109 to 116 days of gestation, 0/10 (0%); 130 to 137 days of gestation, 0/10 (0%). Of 30 ewes vaccinated with a cell culture supernatant fluid control between 35 and 43 days of gestation, 6.7% (2/30) failed to lamb at term. Two ewes vaccinated with BLU23 vaccine between 35 and 43 days of gestation had lambs with hydranencephaly. All other lambs born were clinically normal. Three ewes vaccinated with BLU23 aborted. Two of these were vaccinated between 35 and 43 days of gestation, the 3rd between 81 and 88 days of gestation. Five lambs were born with BLU group antibody. Four of these were from ewes vaccinated between 35 and 43 days of gestation, and 2 of these had hydranencephaly. The fifth was from a ewe vaccinated between 57 and 64 days of gestation. The vaccine did not produce disease in adult sheep, but was a potent cause of early foetal death and to a much lesser extent foetal malformation.     

Laparoscopic colopexy in a horse

An 11-year-old Trakehner gelding required 2 ventral midline celiotomies for correction of a large colon volvulus and a large colon displacement, respectively. Laparoscopic colopexy was performed 50 days following the 2nd celiotomy. Delayed laparoscopic colopexy is minimally invasive and does not disrupt the ventral midline incision following abdominal exploration.     

Homing ability widens the sphere of influence of the earthworm Lumbricus terrestris L.

We report that the deep-burrowing earthworm Lumbricus terrestris L. possesses short-range homing capability. For 2 months we followed the soil surface activity of 18 field-collected L. terrestris in an experimental laboratory population. We recorded 26 cases where an individual after completely leaving its burrow returned to the burrow by backing along its own outward trail. Maximally, homing occurred from a distance of 0.70 m and after more than 3 h on the soil surface. The evolution of homing ability in L. terrestris is most likely related to the importance of the burrow for survival and reproduction. This adaptation also guarantees individuals an expanded foraging area, which we believe can partly explain the remarkable efficiency of L. terrestris in the burial of surface litter.     

Imaging of intermittency in ripple-wave turbulence

The dynamics of a fluid surface filled with high-amplitude ripples were studied with a technique (diffusing light photography) that resolves the height at all locations instantaneously. Even when nonlinearities are strong enough to generate a (Kolmogorov) cascade from long wavelength (where energy is input) to shorter wavelength, the resulting turbulent state contains large coherent spatial structures. The appearance of these structures in a thermal equilibrium state (with the same average energy) would be highly improbable.     

Field margins and management affect settlement and spread of an introduced dew-worm (Lumbricus terrestris L.) population

To study the feasibility of earthworm introduction for increasing the macroporosity and permeability of arable heavy clay, deep-burrowing earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris L.) were inoculated into a tile drained experimental field in Jokioinen, S-W Finland in autumn 1996. Inoculation with the Earthworm Inoculation Unit technique was at the up-slope end of the field, in the field margins under permanent grass, and inside the four 0.46 ha plots of the field. The experiment was monitored on three occasions. In 1998 the L. terrestris population had persisted in low numbers only in field and plot margins. By 2003, when the field had been under set-aside grass for three years, density had grown in the margins and L. terrestris were also found inside the field at a very low density. The third monitoring was in autumn 2009, after a further four years as set-aside and a subsequent division of the field into no-till and ploughing management, and looked at the effects of management (margins, no-till, ploughing), distance from the inoculation and sub-drainage on L. terrestris abundance. The abundance displayed a clear gradient over the field, declining from 14 ind. and 18 g m^?2 at 5–9 m from inoculation, to 1 ind. and 2 g m^?2 at 56–60 m distance. Margins had the highest abundances (16 ind. and 32 g m^?2), followed by no-till (4 ind. and 4 g m^?2) and ploughing (1 ind. and 1 g m^?2). Abundances were significantly higher above the tiles than between them (P < 0.05). The results demonstrate the importance of no-till and sub-drain line habitats as settlement supports for the inoculated population. Field margins proved to be decisive for inoculation success, by providing bridgeheads for population establishment and later by acting as source areas for the colonisation of the field. This finding highlights the general importance of field margins in the dispersal ecology of earthworms in arable landscapes.