DESCRIPTION OF ESOPHAGOSTOMY TUBE PLACEMENT IN TWO GIANT ANTEATER (MYRMECOPHAGA TRIDACTYLA) CADAVERS.

Feeding of managed populations of giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) is challenging in injured patients that present with anorexia. This report describes an approach for esophagostomy tube placement in this species. Cadavers of two adult giant anteaters were used for technique development. The animal was positioned in dorsal recumbency, and a guide feeding tube was inserted orally into the esophagus. A ventral midline incision in the midcervical region was made to access the esophagus and to protect submandibular salivary glands. The cervical musculature was dissected and retracted laterally to the right, the vagosympathetic nerve trunk was identified and preserved, and the esophagus was incised over the guide tube. The guide tube was removed to facilitate placement of the definitive tube, which was premeasured from its insertion point in the midcervical area to the level of the seventh-ninth intercostal space. The tube was secured to the cervical skin on the left side with a finger-trap suture.

Partial Amputation of a Nonreducing Prolapsed Phallus in an Ostrich (Struthio camelus).

A 19-year-old male ostrich (Struthio camelus) was referred to a veterinary teaching hospital (São Paulo State University, Botucatu, Brazil) due to a 6-month history of recurrent prolapse of the phallus. On physical examination, 2 ulcerative wounds were present on the phallus, as well as caseous plaques and myiasis. Conservative treatment resulted in improvement but prolapse of the phallus remained. Thus, a decision was made to perform a partial phallectomy. The surgery was successful and no postoperative complications occurred. When the ostrich was reexamined 6 months postsurgery, the ostrich was alert, in good health, and the surgical site completely healed. The owner verbally reported no recurrence of the phallus prolapse 1 year after surgery.

Normal echocardiographic and radiographic reference values for crab-eating fox (Cerdocyon thous) anesthetized with ketamine and midazolam.

The cardiac evaluation of wild animals is still a wide and largely unknown field for several species. Therefore, through complimentary examinations such as radiography, echocardiography and serum troponin levels, this study aimed at describing the values observed in 12 crab-eating foxes (Cerdocyon thous) anesthetized with a combination of intramuscular ketamine and midazolam. Thus, through complementary exams such as radiography, echocardiography and serum troponin levels, the aim of this study was to describe the cardiac values in 12 wild foxes (C. thous) anesthetized with an intramuscular injection of ketamine and midazolam. After anaesthetization, the radiographic, echocardiographic and immunoenzymatic reference values for the 12 males in the sample group were determined. Compared with those in domestic canids, there was a decrease in the sizes of the septum, wall and left ventricular cavity as well as decreases in the transmitral blood flow velocity indices, correlated with preserved serum cardiac troponin (cTnI) levels. Thus, M-mode echocardiography proved to be safer, with results that were comparative to those for other species of wild canids with indexed values. In addition, when evaluating the systolic function and segmentary contractions, the anesthetic combination did not have any effects on the results of complementary examinations performed in crab-eating foxes (C. thous) included in this study.