Publications by authors named "Sylvain Larrat"

Article Synopsis
  • The European hedgehog is declining in population, prompting conservation efforts, and this study focused on understanding the causes of death in hedgehogs admitted to a French rehabilitation center.
  • Out of 159 dead hedgehogs analyzed, 92% had identifiable causes of death, with impaired condition (30%), bacterial infections (26%), and trauma (20%) being the most common.
  • The study also found significant exposure to toxicants, such as anticoagulant rodenticides in 42% of hedgehogs, alongside a low prevalence of blood pathogens, emphasizing the need for further investigations into the health and ecological factors affecting hedgehog populations.
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  • The study analyzes beluga whale carcasses from the St. Lawrence Estuary, Canada, since 1983 to understand the nutritional condition related to various causes of death.
  • By refining death categories and using Bayesian linear models, researchers identified distinct nutritional conditions linked to specific causes, such as lower conditions for those that died from neonatal mortality and primary starvation.
  • The findings suggest a connection between chronic health issues and poorer nutritional conditions in belugas, while surprising results show that whales dying from trauma did not necessarily exhibit the highest nutritional health.
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  • Biochemical and hematological analyses are crucial for evaluating animal health, but wild species lack reliable reference intervals due to difficulties in collecting body fluids from free-ranging animals.
  • The study established reference intervals for Hermann's tortoises by analyzing blood samples from 195 individuals collected in southern France between 2010 and 2016, focusing on thirteen parameters like testosterone, cholesterol, and calcium.
  • Results indicated that, except for urea and AST levels, reference intervals from free-ranging tortoises were generally similar to those of captive tortoises in Germany, suggesting that captive data could be useful for assessing wild populations.
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Objective: Coagulation tests are an essential tool in the diagnosis and management of coagulopathies in mammals. The aim of the current study was to establish reference intervals for prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial PT (aPTT) in healthy ferrets using 2 different point-of-care analyzers (Idexx Coag DX and MS QuickVet Coag Combo).

Animals: 86 clinically healthy ferrets under 3 years of age (47 females and 39 males) from 4 breeders and 2 private practices.

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Female dogs, especially intact or neutered lately, are at increased risk for reproductive disorders including mammary tumors (MTs). This retrospective study evaluated the prevalence of reproductive pathology and associated mortality in a cohort of female dogs presented at a single veterinary clinic. The medical records of female dogs born in 2000-2003 were reviewed.

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A 14-year-old unsexed African grey parrot () was presented with a 12-hour history of neurological signs and vomiting. The external physical examination of the patient revealed lethargy, moderate hypothermia, a head tilt, and horizontal nystagmus. Whole-body radiographic imaging and blood biochemistry parameters were unremarkable, and a serological test to detect bornavirus was negative.

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Ferret Behavior Medicine.

Vet Clin North Am Exot Anim Pract

January 2021

Domestic ferrets (Mustela putorius furo) are common zoologic companion animals and display specific body language and vocalizations. Social interactions, play behavior, and resting periods are important keystone in domestic ferret behavior. Specific housing and environmental enrichment are recommended to preserve the expression of normal behavior and physiology in ferrets.

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Treatment of avian renal disease relies on supportive care, such as fluid therapy and nutritional support. Analgesia and adaptations of the environment are indicated in cases of renal disease associated with painful joints. Other treatments vary with the underlying etiology and may include systemic antibiotics, antifungal therapy, vitamin A supplementation, or chelation therapy.

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The preoperative contouring of plates decreases the duration of surgery and improves the quality of the reduction of pelvic fractures. Patient-tailored three-dimensionally printed pelvises might be an interesting tool for achieving that purpose. Currently, no study has evaluated the accuracy of measurements performed on three-dimensional printed models in comparison with computed tomography data for complex bones, such as the pelvis.

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The determination of body condition is a fundamental component of an evaluation during postmortem examinations of cetaceans. Three veterinarians experienced in beluga postmortem techniques subjectively evaluated 62 carcasses of beluga whales ( Delphinapterus leucas) in duplicate, using a visual analog scale. The result of evaluation and scoring was repeatable in cachectic animals and animals in very good condition but did not capture the continuum of body condition determinations between the obvious visual conditions.

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Fish and aquatic invertebrates deserve evidence-based medicine. Pharmacologic information is available; most pharmacokinetic studies are derived from the aquaculture industry and extrapolated to ornamental fish. Conversely, advanced diagnostics and information regarding diseases affecting only ornamental fish and invertebrates require more peer-reviewed experimental studies; the examples of carp edema virus, sea star wasting disease, seahorse nutrition, and gas bubble disease of fish under human care are discussed.

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To evaluate the toxicity of short-term high doses of meloxicam in American kestrels ( Falco sparverius ), 32 male captive-born, 1- to 4-year-old American kestrels were randomly assigned to 4 groups: 3 groups treated with meloxicam (n = 9 per group) and a control group (n = 5). Meloxicam was administered orally via feeding tube in the proventriculus at 2, 10, and 20 mg/kg every 12 hours for 7 days for the treatment groups, while the control group received saline solution. The birds were evaluated for the presence of clinical signs, abnormalities in the complete blood cell count and in the plasma biochemical panel for the 20-mg/kg group, and gross and histopathologic lesions.

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Veterinarians caring for companion animals may encounter microsporidia in various host species, and diagnosis and treatment of these fungal organisms can be particularly challenging. Fourteen microsporidial species have been reported to infect humans and some of them are zoonotic; however, to date, direct zoonotic transmission is difficult to document transit through the digestive tract. In this context, summarizing information available about microsporidiosis of companion exotic animals is relevant due to the proximity of these animals to their owners.

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This study compared blood glucose concentrations measured with a portable blood glucometer and a validated laboratory analyzer in venous blood samples of 20 pet ferrets (Mustela putorius furo). Correlation and agreement were evaluated with a Bland-Altman plot method and Lin's concordance correlation coefficient. Blood glucose concentrations measured with the laboratory analyzer and the glucometer ranged from 1.

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Tetralogy of Fallot associated with bidirectional shunting across a large ventricular septal defect, was found in a 6-year-old ferret. The prognosis associated with tetralogy of Fallot is usually poor. This case is interesting given the advanced age of the ferret.

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The pathogenesis of the recently recognized "red vent syndrome" in wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) is not fully understood. Pathologic observations indicate that this syndrome is associated with the presence of nonencapsulated larvae of the nematode Anisakis simplex in the body wall, the lower intestinal wall, and the visceral cavity surrounding the vent region. We evaluated the relationship between the occurrence of red vent syndrome and intensity of infection with Anisakis sp.

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Multiple control methods have been used in North America to manage the spread of rabies caused by the raccoon (Procyon lotor) rabies virus variant (RRVV). Recently, oral vaccination with ONRAB(®) vaccine baits, which contain an adenovirus rabies glycoprotein recombinant, has been made available as an additional tool for rabies control. Our objectives were to estimate rabies antibody prevalence in wild-caught raccoons and striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis), and identify factors influencing the probability of being antibody positive at the individual level in these species, following oral rabies vaccination (ORV) campaigns in which ONRAB was distributed aerially in 2007-2009 in southern Québec, Canada.

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Microfilariae are considered non-pathogenic in wild birds. The objective of the current communication is to report host reactions to microfilarial infection of unusual intensity in emaciated boreal owls (Aegolius funereus). An unusually large number of boreal owls (n = 21) were submitted to the Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Center-Quebec Region for post-mortem examination during the winter of 2009.

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Article Synopsis
  • * The program uses a pooled digestion assay on walrus tongue samples to guide public health recommendations, allowing safe consumption of parasite-free meat while ensuring infected meat is destroyed.
  • * Since its implementation, the NTPP has effectively managed trichinellosis outbreaks, reducing infections to only 2.9% of tested walruses and contributing to the absence of major outbreaks in recent years due to strong community involvement and a science-based approach.
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The objectives of this study were twofold: to determine the sensitivity of gill biopsies used for the screening of Pseudodactylogyrus bini in subclinically infested American eels (Anguilla rostrata) and to evaluate the effect of bath anesthesia on the proportion of infested eels. Fifty-four eels were euthanized following either intracoelomic injection of T61 or deep anesthesia with tricaine methanesulfonate. Proportions of eels infested by P.

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