• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.111-113
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• 2018

A three-month-old female African buffalo born at Seoul Zoo showed signs of abdominal distension, bulging of the perineal skin, and small stool volume compared to feed intake. Upon physical examination, atresia ani with rectovaginal fistula was diagnosed. This case was subjected to surgery under inhalation anesthesia after injecting a sedative. Surgery was performed in two steps: anal reconstruction and closing the rectovaginal fistula. First, a circular skin incision was made at the end of the rectal pouch to create an anus, and then the skin of the anus and the mucous membrane of the rectum were brought into apposition by simple interrupted sutures. Second, the rectovaginal fistula was ligated on both vulval and anal side. Antibiotics were administered on every alternate day and the sutures were removed at ten days surgery under sedation. The rectovaginal communication was closed and the calf was able to urinate and defecate normally. The animal grew to become a normal adult without any complications. This is the first case report of atresia ani with rectovaginal fistula in an African buffalo, that was successfully treated by surgical intervention.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.91-94
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• 2011

We report 2 cases of Thelazia rhodesii infection in the African buffaloes, Syncerus caffer, in Zambia. African buffalo calves were captured from the livestock and wildlife interface area of the Kafue basin in the dry season of August 2005 for the purpose to translocate to game ranches. At capture, calves (n = 48) were examined for the presence of eye infections by gently manipulating the orbital membranes to check for eye-worms in the conjunctival sacs and corneal surfaces. Two (4.3%) were infected and the mean infection burden per infected eye was 5.3 worms (n=3). The mean length of the worms was 16.4 mm (95% CI; 14.7-18.2 mm) and the diameter 0.41 mm (95% CI; 0.38-0.45 mm). The surface cuticle was made of transverse striations which gave the worms a characteristic serrated appearance. Although the calves showed signs of kerato-conjunctivitis, the major pathological change observed was corneal opacity. The calves were kept in quarantine and were examined thrice at 30 days interval. At each interval, they were treated with 200 ${\mu}g/kg$ ivermectin, and then translocated to game ranches. Given that the disease has been reported in cattle and Kafue lechwe (Kobus lechwe kafuensis) in the area, there is a need for a comprehensive study which aims at determining the disease dynamics and transmission patterns of thelaziasis between wildlife and livestock in the Kafue basin.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.67-69
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• 2010

Trypomastogotes of Trypanosoma brucei were detected from 4 asymptomatic kudus (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) on a game ranch located approximately 45 km north east of Lusaka, Zambia. Blood smears examined from 14 wildlife species comprising of the impala (Aepyceros melampus), Kafue lechwe (kobus leche kafuensis), sable antelope (Hippotragus niger), tsessebe (Damaliscus lunatus), warthog (Phacochoerus aethiopicus), puku (Kobus vardoni), zebra (Equus burchelli), waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus), bushbuck (Tragelaphus scriptus), reedbuck (Redunca arundinum), wilderbeest (Connochaetes taurinus), hartebeest (Alcephelus lichtensteini), African buffalo (Syncerus caffer), and kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) showed that only the kudu had T. brucei. Although game ranching has emerged to be a successful ex-situ conservation strategy aimed at saving the declining wildlife population in the National Parks, our findings suggest that it has the potential of aiding the re-distribution of animal diseases. Hence, there is a need for augmenting wildlife conservation with disease control strategies aimed at reducing the risk of disease transmission between wildlife and domestic animals.