Physical Exam and Techniques Flashcards
What are abnormal behaviors for axolotls? Xenopus?
Floating, rubbing, rolling, or darting. They are typically sedentary bottom-dwellers. Sick Xenopus often float and are reluctant to dive.
How can heart rate be detected in amphibians?
Examining ventral body surface.
Can amphibians undergo abdominal palpation?
Can be attempted, but many will inflate abdomen as a defense mechanism, making palpation difficult.
Care must be taken during oral exam to prevent what?
Breaking of delicate maxillary bones.
How can body condition be determined in amphibians?
Prominence of skeletal system, particularly the pelvis in frogs, and by palpating muscles and abdominal contents.
Blood samples should be collected in what?
Lithium heparinized syringes.
Where can blood be collected in amphibians?
Midventral abdominal vein - Frogs and salamanders. Midway between sternum and pelvis in cranial direction.
Ventral caudal vein - Salamanders.
Lingual venous plexus - Prominent in frogs, beneath the tongue. Tongue gently drawn forward and plexus punctured.
What method of venipuncture is preferred in Xenopus? Why?
Cardiocentesis under anesthesia for terminal blood collection. Lack tail and tongue, do not have a prominent midventral abdominal vein.
How can amphibian skin be closed after biopsies?
Nonabsorbable suture or tissue glue.
What is radiology useful for in amphibians?
Foreign bodies, impactions, pneumonia, and skeletal abnormalities.
What methods are commonly used for injections/gavage?
IM - Muscles of forelimbs in frogs and epaxials in salamanders.
IC - Off midline in lower abdomen
Dorsal lymph sac - SQ in caudodorsal part of frog’s body, over pelvic area
Gavage - Standard rodent stainless steel gavage tubes or IV teflon catheters in small species
How can amphibians be euthanized?
Sodium pentobarbital injected IV, IC, or via dorsal lymph sacs. Immersion or injection of buffered MS222, Immersion or topical application of benzocaine.
What are two unusual, but normal anatomic features sometimes encountered during necropsy?
Bidder’s organ - Male toads, grapelike cluster.
Paravertebral lime sacs - White structures along the vertebral column and within the skull. Associated with Ca metabolism.
Where is black pigment normally found in amphibians? What causes an increase in black pigment?
Normally found in active frog ovaries and liver. Antigenic stimulation and starvation will cause melanomacrophage stimulation and an increase in black pigment.
What indicators of disease process can be found on necropsy?
Rubbery, deformed bones associated with MBD.
Cloudy cornea and anterior chamber associated with corneal lipidosis or secondary uveitis due to septicemia.
