Dylan Yaffy, Lecturer in Zoo and Wildlife Pathology

Exotic animal pathology is a growing specialisation and, having completed my BVetMed, Anatomic Pathology residency and MVetMed at the RVC, I was extremely pleased to return to take on the new role of Lecturer in Zoo and Wildlife Pathology.

I’ve joined a large team of pathologists with established expertise in comparative, laboratory, forensic, farm and domestic animal pathology. Following this new appointment, the Diagnostic Labs are seeing an increase in zoo, exotic pets and wildlife submissions to its post mortem and biopsy service. No animal is too small, big or obscure for our team.

Recent interesting investigations include rainbow trout fry syndrome affecting a small colony of fish, a soft tissue sarcoma in a pet hognose snake, campylobacteriosis in a capybara from a private collection, and even a digestive tract prolapse in a Madagascar hissing cockroach! These are some of the biopsies and cadavers submitted to the RVC Diagnostic Laboratories, in addition to a range of exotic pet samples reviewed in conjunction with clinical pathology and ancillary diagnostic test findings.

As part of local wildlife disease surveillance we have diagnosed a range of infectious and non-infectious diseases, including leptospirosis causing icterus in a fox cub and cerebral haemorrhage and a femoral fracture secondary to trauma in a barn swallow and little owl, respectively.

Our wildlife forensic investigations, often focused on non-accidental injuries associated with blunt force or ballistic trauma, have contributed to convictions under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, as was the outcome in a case of mute swans with fractured skulls. In collaboration with RVC Diagnostic Imaging, we were able to visualise the fractures prior to the post mortem and then confirm their clinical significance through histopathology. In another forensic investigation, the CT report helped us detect ballistic trauma in the dorsum of a badger.

To assist in meeting the requirements of the Zoo Licensing Act 1981, the Diagnostic Laboratories offer post mortem examinations for regional zoos. These investigations often focus on chronic lesions such as osteoarthritis, heart disease and chronic kidney disease, as suspected in recent submissions of a tiger and snow leopard.

At the other end of the spectrum, we investigated the premature emergence of a wallaby joey from the marsupium, which identified hypothermia as the cause of death secondary to presumed intramarsupium aggression from its twin.

Benefits for teaching and research

All exotics species submissions to the Diagnostic Laboratories contribute to the clinical teaching of our veterinary students and pathology residents. They also provide valuable data for research projects aimed at increasing our understanding of the diseases impacting some of our lesser studied pets and other unusual zoo or wild species.

Thanks to a kind donation for student teaching, final year BVetMed students attending our exotics pathology practical had the opportunity to post mortem a 4.5m python, alongside a range of common British wildlife. Additionally, our recent increase in exotic feline submissions has stimulated research into cardiomyopathies of non-domestic cats.

The RVC post mortem service offers a highly competitive turnaround time, including a preliminary report within 72 working hours of examination and a final report within four to six working weeks for standard and forensic cases, respectively. The biopsy service, which can also accommodate small exotic pets, such as mice, birds and fish, aims for a 72-hour turnaround from tissue receipt to report release.

The exotics diagnostic service also provides haematology, biochemistry and cytology interpretation, in addition to a range of in-house microbiology and parasitology tests.

If you’re interested in learning more about our exotic pathology service or would like to enquire about a submission, please contact the Diagnostic Laboratories (Diagnosticlabs@rvc.ac.uk). Exotic species pathology research enquiries can be sent directly to myself (Dyaffy6@rvc.ac.uk).