2018 - 87 (2)

A skeleton of a large mature, probably male, dog was excavated in the city center of Tongeren, oncea Roman city in Belgium. Together with the skeleton, a circular food bowl in terra sigillata pottery wasdiscovered, positioned near the mouth of the dog, from which the upstanding edges had been removed.This was interpreted as a grave offering, representing symbolically that care was taken of the animalafter death but that the bowl had become useless now. This habit of adding a circular bowl also fits ina Celtic mythical tradition, with dogs biting off pieces of the full moon and creating the moon cyclus.Circular bowls represent the moon and are related to the mythical dogs or wolves.The archeological find is exceptional but fits into the long standing tradition of dog burials, starting14 200 years ago with the Bonn Oberkassel dog and continuing into the present. Up till now, someowners still add goods to the resting place of their pets.

Incomplete ossificatie van de humeruscondylen (IOHC) bij de hond is een vrij zeldzaamelleboogprobleem dat voornamelijk bij spaniëlrassen wordt gezien maar ook bij andere rassenkan voorkomen. Deze aandoening gaat niet altijd gepaard met klinische symptomen maarkan de aanleiding zijn van elleboogkreupelheid en zelfs condylaire humerusfracturen. Dediagnose van IOHC is niet altijd eenvoudig. Radiografisch is de fissuur niet altijd zichtbaar.Computertomografie is de meest efficiënte beeldvormingstechniek om deze aandoening metzekerheid te diagnosticeren. Indien het dier geen klachten vertoont, kan conservatieve therapieworden overwogen maar in geval van kreupelheid is het plaatsen van een compressieschroef demeest gangbare behandeling.

A six-year-old, male, castrated domestic shorthair cat was presented for evaluation of an oralmass. Full physical examination revealed a large hard mass arising from the lateral aspect ofthe caudal part of the left mandible. Abdominal ultrasound and thoracic computed tomography(CT) were performed to rule out metastatic disease. In addition, CT of the skull with intravenouscontrast agent was performed. Histopathological examination of extra-oral biopsies confirmedthe tentative diagnosis of peripheral osteoma. A three-dimensional printed skull was used inconjunction with the CT images to determine the detailed location and extent of the mass andto identify anatomical spatial relationships with important neurovascular structures. Surgicaldebulking of the osteoma was performed. The cat recovered uneventfully but the mass regrewnine months after debulking therapy, sooner than expected. Nevertheless, CT scan of the skullwas suggestive for regrowth of the peripheral osteoma rather than for malignant transformation.The owners did not elect to pursue caudal mandibulectomy.

An eight-year-old, female cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus) was presented with anorexia,lethargy, a mass at the lower side of the wing and discoloration of the feathers. Physical examinationshowed an ulcerated nodular integumentary lesion of approximately 4 cm³ ventromedial on thewing at the side of the propatagium and the humerus. Lateral and ventrodorsal radiographsrevealed only hepatomegaly. After a stabilization period, surgical excision of the tumor wasperformed. Based on histopathological evaluation and bacterial culture of the surgically removedtissue, the lesion was typed as an integumentary squamous cell carcinoma with secondarybacterial infection (Corynebacterium sp). Four weeks postoperative, the tumor had recurred.Chemotherapeutic treatment was started with intratumoral carboplatin (1.5 mg/cm³) once aweek. Because of further tumor growth after the second administration of carboplatin, resectionof the mass was performed before the next infiltration. However, the bird died during anesthesia.Despite increase in tumor size, histopathological and immunohistochemical evaluations showeddegeneration of the tumor with intercellular edema and vacuolization of the tumor cells,presumably resulting from carboplatin administration. More research is needed to investigatethe efficacy and safety of the intratumoral administration of carboplatin as a treatment option inbirds with integumentary squamous cell carcinoma.

Elbow dysplasia is an important cause of forelimb lameness in large breed dogs. The aim ofthis study was to report on the arthroscopic findings associated with medial compartment erosion(MCE) of the canine elbow joint. Retrospectively, records of 84 elbow joints from 66 dogsdiagnosed arthroscopically with MCE were retrieved from a medical records database (2008 -2012). The radiographic degree of osteoarthritis was determined. Arthroscopic images and videoswere evaluated in detail. In nine joints (10.7%), MCE was the only pathological finding (= group1). Group 2 (n = 50, 59.5%) consisted of elbows with MCE concomitant with medial coronoidprocess (MCP) pathology. In group 3 (n = 25 joints, 29.8%), MCE was diagnosed during a second-look arthroscopy in dogs presented with lameness after arthroscopic treatment for medialcoronoid disease. There was a significant age difference (p < 0.001) between the groups, with dogsin group 1 being the oldest. Complete erosion of the medial compartment was most commonlyfound in group 1, whereas focal cartilage erosion was mostly identified in group 2. Overall, additionalcartilage pathology of the lateral part of the humeral condyle and/or the radial head wasrecognized in 58.3% of the joints (49/84).

Dourine is a contagious disease caused by Trypanosoma equiperdum that is transmitteddirectly from animal to animal during coitus. Dourine is known as an important disease in manycountries, and it threatens equidae worldwide. It is reported to be widespread in South America,Eastern Europe, Russia, Mongolia, Namibia and Ethiopia. The disease can be carried to variousparts of the world through the transportation of infected animals and semen. Since knowledgeof the prepatent infectiousness of a recently infected animal is lacking, introduction of thedisease is in principle an ever-present threat. Definitive diagnosis depends on the identificationof the parasite by means of direct microscopy. This is rarely possible in practice and therefore,diagnosis in the field is based on the observation of typical clinical signs, together with serologicaltests. This paper is an endeavour to review briefly and compile information on the appearanceand importance of Dourine in terms of its epidemiological and clinical features, as well as on itsdiagnosis, treatment and prognosis.

As in other animals, distress and impaired welfare have a deleterious effect on the mental,physical and behavioral health of snakes in the wild and in captivity. Besides anthropogenicdisturbance, the availability of food and shelter, the presence of predators, and environmentalfactors, such as seasonality and climatological changes, are important factors that affect thestress level and subsequent welfare in wild snake populations. In captive snakes, inappropriatemanagement is the most prominent cause of chronic stress and impaired welfare. Chronicstress can be assumed by looking at the snake’s behavior, but there is need for a standardizedquantification method to pin-point more accurately (chronic) stress levels. The biomarkersuitable in this framework is the level of corticosterone in plasma, feces and shed skin.