Abstract

Investigation of enterotoxaemia outbreaks in Chinkara Deer (Gazella bennettii) kept under tropical climatic conditions

Authors: Azka Naseer, Ghulam Mustafa, Bushra Tariq, Sana Alam, Muhammad Muneeb, Zeeshan Ahmad Bhutta

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.71081/cvj/2024.005

Abstract
The current study recorded clinic-pathologic data during an outbreak of enterotoxaemia in Chinkara deer (Gazella bennettii), which led to the death of thirteen of the thirty-four animals. Young animals had a significantly (P<0.05) higher death rate than older animals. The clinical signs included severe loss of appetite, significant lethargy, animals huddling in a corner, elevated body temperature, urine with a dark brown color like chocolate, and diarrhea with a greenish-watery consistency. The postmortem examination of the dead deer showed the existence of a straw-colored exudation in the peritoneal cavity. The affected animals consistently exhibited congested and edematous lungs, hydropericardium, hydrothorax, watery contents in the small intestine, bloated and soft kidneys, opisthotonus, and ballooning and hemorrhages of the small and large intestines. The myocardium and jejunal mucosa were frequently the sites of multifocal petechial hemorrhages in acute cases. Pulmonary edema, perivascular cuffing in the lungs, congestion, proteinaceous fluid in the alveoli, and hemorrhagic enteritis were the most significant histologic changes. Thirteen deer were necropsied, and the urine from their bladders showed a high glucose content. The renal tubular epithelial cells were disrupted, and necrosis and congestion were observed during the histopathological examination of the kidneys. The clinical manifestations, post-mortem lesions, histological results, and isolation were all compatible with enterotoxaemia caused by C. perfringens type D being the root cause of mortality.

Keywords: Enterotoxemia, Clostridium perfringens, Chinkara Deer, Pathology