2018 - 87 (6)

In the monotheistic religions emerging in the Middle-East, the cradle of our civilization, pigs wereof low esteem. Eating their meat was even forbidden in the Mosaic laws, most probably because in aridor semi-arid regions these animals were in competition with humans for food. The taboo on pork couldnot be maintained within Christian practice once the church established its dominant position in WesternEurope. Products of the large woods made the fattening of domestic pigs easy in that continent,thus providing food necessary for humans to survive hard winters. In this context the early Christian,Saint Anthony of Egypt, became associated with pigs, because he was invoked to protect against epidemicsof ergotism in humans and severe inflammations of widely diverse etiology in animals as wellas in humans. The most typical of these, which occurred in pigs, was termed Saint Anthony’s fire, aswas ergotism in humans. It was mainly the religious order of the Antonites that propagated the pigletas the attribute of this saint. This unusual religious association symbolizes the acceptance in mediaevalWestern Europe of pork as high-quality food.

Miniature pigs, like the Vietnamese pot-bellied pig and the Kunekune, are the most popularhobby pig breeds. Despite their popularity, the knowledge of their health and management isstill scarce. They have an exemplary sense of smell and hearing, possess good adaptability andare easy to handle. A well-ventilated shelter space with an area for recreation, and incorporationof straw for manipulation prevents boredom. Drinking water must be provided at all times.Restricted feeding ones or twice a day is preferred to prevent obesity. Unexpected aggressivebehavior may occur and lead to abandonment of pet pigs. Overgrowth of claws, mange andsunburns are common skin problems. Diarrhea due to Escherichia coli is a common problemin piglets. Neutering is recommended to prevent aggressive behavior and pungent smell inmales and to avoid the risk of neoplasms. It is preferably done at a young age to avoid surgicalcomplications. Prophylaxis against erysipelas and parasites are recommended biannually. Otherperiodical health care practices include tusk and hoof trimming.

In this case report, a seven-year-old, male, castrated Landseer presented with chronic respiratorydistress, occasional coughing, dysphonia and exercise intolerance is described. The stresscaused by transportation and the physical examination rendered the dog severely dyspneic andcyanotic. At that moment, the core body temperature was increased up to 42.5 °C. Based on theclinical signs, laryngeal paralysis causing heat stroke was the most likely diagnosis. The dog wasanesthetized and intensive temperature control methods, like active cooling and fluid therapy,were applied. As soon as the dog was cardiovascularly stable, emergency treatment for laryngealparalysis was performed. As a result of timely intervention, the dog recovered completely withoutany persisting complications.

Neutrophilic and ulcerative dermatitis is reported in a mixed breed dog. The condition wasconsidered to be an atypical case of pyoderma gangrenosum. Clinically, it had a more superficialulceration, a more pronounced pustular component and lacked the characteristic cutaneous painand tenderness of the lesions. The diagnosis of pyoderma gangrenosum was made as a diagnosisof exclusion. The dog showed an excellent response to treatment with ciclosporin (Cyclavance,Virbac, Leuven, Belgium).

A variant of degenerative granulomatous mural folliculitis with cytotoxic dermatitis is reportedin a dog that presented with multifocal, well-demarcated, annular alopecia with peripheral crusting.The skin condition might have been drug-induced and responded well to oral ciclosporin.

A fifteen-year-old, male, castrated American Staffordshire terrier was presented with asubcutaneous, ulcerated mass on the right carpal joint. Thoracic radiographs and abdominalultrasound were both negative for metastatic disease. Punch biopsies revealed the histopathologicaldiagnosis of a malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor. Due to the extent of the primarymass, local excision was not possible, and amputation of the limb was not an option for theowner. The dog was treated with intravenous administration of combretastatin A4-phosphate,a vascular disrupting agent. A biopsy was taken before and after treatment and power-Dopplerultrasound and contrast-enhanced ultrasound were performed to assess pre- and posttreatmentevaluation of the tumor vasculature. The treatment resulted in massive necrosis of the tumor.

Nine pygmy goats underwent surgical treatment for obstructive urolithiasis in a period ofsix months. In two cases, (second) revision surgery was necessary resulting in a total of twelveprocedures under general anesthesia. Different anesthetic protocols were applied: analgesia wasprovided by an opioid (12/12) combined with either benzodiazepine (10/12) or an alpha-2 agonist(2/12). Anesthesia was induced with propofol (10/12) or ketamine (2/12) and maintained withisoflurane (8/12) or sevoflurane (4/12) in oxygen in a semi-closed circle system with continuousmonitoring during anesthesia. Minor complications were mild bradycardia (4/12), hypotension(3/12), metabolic acidosis (1/12) and hypothermia (12/12). In four cases, epidural anesthesia wasperformed; in one of those four cases, severe complications developed (paralysis, 1/4). The goatwas euthanized later. Although urethral obstruction increases the risk of general anesthesia, theselection of an appropriate anesthetic protocol, adequate preoperative examination/ preparationand detailed monitoring throughout anesthesia reduced the incidence of severe complications inthis case series.

In this article, the use of desoxycorticosterone pivalate is retrospectively reviewed in eightdogs with primary hypoadrenocorticism, presented at the Small Animal Department of GhentUniversity. The results showed that desoxycorticosterone pivalate provided adequate mineralocorticoidreplacement in all cases, also in the dogs that had previously been treated with fludrocortisoneacetate. A starting dosage of 1.5 – 2.2 mg/kg SC was used, with a fixed dosing interval of28 days in most of the cases. Each time, prednisolone was added to the therapy as glucocorticoidsupplementation. No side effects related to desoxycorticosterone pivalate therapy were notedand all owners were satisfied with the treatment consisting of desoxycorticosterone pivalate andprednisolone.