Infectious canine hepatitis in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in wildlife rescue centres in the UK.

Outbreaks of infectious canine hepatitis are described in red foxes ( ITALIC! Vulpes vulpes) at two wildlife rescue centres in the UK. Disease occurred in two-month-old to four-month-old juvenile foxes, which were held in small enclosures in groups of three to eight animals. The foxes died or were euthanased after a short clinical course, sometimes including neurological signs and jaundice, with a high case fatality rate. Four red foxes submitted for postmortem examination had enlarged, congested livers, with rounded borders and mild accentuation of the lobular pattern. On histological examination, there was random, multifocal to massive hepatic necrosis, along with multifocal vasculitis in the central nervous system (CNS) and mild, multifocal glomerulonephritis. Intranuclear inclusion bodies, typical of canine adenovirus type 1 (CAV-1) infection, were present in hepatocytes, vascular endothelial cells in the CNS, renal glomeruli and renal tubular epithelial cells. CAV-1 was detected in tissues from affected foxes by PCR and sequencing. Congregation of juvenile foxes in wildlife rescue centres is likely to be a risk factor for transmission of CAV-1. Preventive measures in wildlife centres should be implemented to prevent the spread of the virus among conspecifics and to other susceptible species.

A small scale survey of ivermectin resistance in sheep nematodes using the faecal egg count reduction test on samples collected from Scottish sheep.

Thirty-eight sheep flocks, predominantly from the south/central Scotland, were examined using a faecal egg count reduction test (FECRT) for the presence of ivermectin (IVM) resistant nematodes. Efficacies of less than 95%, 14-17 days post-treatment, were identified in 6 of 17 naturally grazing flocks where pre-treatment faecal egg counts were in excess of 150 eggs per gram. Efficacies on these IVM resistant farms ranged from 66 to 92%. One other suspected cases of IVM resistance was also identified in returned material. The larvae detected in post-treatment coprocultures from resistant flocks were from the genera Teladorsagia (4 from 6) and Trichostrongylus (2 from 6).