Salmonella is endemic in dairy cattle in New Zealand, and can cause large outbreaks of scouring and mortality. The effects of Salmonella on-farm can be devastating and pose a serious risk to the health, productivity and welfare of affected animals. Salmonella is also a common cause of gastro-intestinal disease in humans, with livestock acting as […]
MICHAEL HARDCASTLESplenectomy for nodular splenic masses or diffuse splenomegaly is common, and we often receive entire spleens, or parts of splenic lesions for histopathology. Some spleens (and splenic masses) are very large, so fixing adequately in formalin prior to submitting to the laboratory for histopathology can be problematic.The entire spleen is our preferred sample, however […]
Do you stain blood or cytology smears in-clinic? Struggle to find an appropriate container to fit the slides and hold the stain?We are very excited to now be stocking Coplin jars for slide staining. These classic glass jars are designed to hold microscope slides in their vertical grooves for staining, plus they have a glass […]
JOHN GILLMalignant catarrhal fever (MCF) is a sporadic disease of cattle and deer, caused by the sheep-associated virus (ovine herpesvirus 2). MCF is passed to cattle and deer by carrier hoggets and lambs, but affected cattle and deer do not transmit MCF to their cohorts. The incubation period can be several months.The following cases show […]
LYNSEY EARL & JOHN O’CONNELL (MPI)The recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in Indonesia (after being free from the disease for 36 years) is a timely reminder of the need for ongoing vigilance for exotic, new, and emerging diseases.Whilst it’s important for veterinarians to know the signs of FMD, there are numerous other exotic diseases […]
SANDY WELTANClinical history:Three smears were received from skin scrapings from cattle with diffuse skin lesions. The lesions were widely distributed but were particularly severe on the white areas of the skin (Figure 1). Laboratory findings:On cytology, the cellularity was high in all the smears and consisted of keratinocytes in a background of erythrocytes. Moderate numbers of […]
Calf screening in dairy herds aims to identify and remove persistently infected (PI) animals before they can infect any pregnant cows.An ideal time to sample calves is during tagging or disbudding. The antigen ELISA is a suitable test to use on ear notch samples for animals in this age group. PCR is a suitable test […]
LISA HULME-MOIRThis recent case highlights the importance of blood film examinations and illustrates how diagnoses may be missed if relying on in-clinic analyser counts alone.Clinical history:A blood sample from a 9-year-old male Labrador cross was submitted for blood film examination after presenting lethargic, off his food and with a temperature of 40.5°C. His popliteal lymph […]
LAWRENCE MCMURTRYWe often get asked why we recommend not refrigerating (or even chilling) faeces requiring a culture for third-stage nematode larvae or when looking for stage-one lungworm larvae.Cold storage of faeces can affect the development and composition of parasites in larval cultures and extraction of lungworm.Third-stage larval culturesOvine nematode species are affected to varying degrees […]
SUNAO FUJITAClinical history:A 16-year-old, thoroughbred gelding presented with a slow growing mass in the left ventral thoracic/axillar region, extending into deep tissue (Figure 1). The mass was firm and non-mobile and had been present for six months, but had not changed in size.Cytology:The smears were of high cellularity, predominantly composed of spindle cells with moderate […]