A 10-year-old female dog presented to its veterinarian for routine exam, vaccination and heartworm testing. It was estimated that the dog had been off heartworm preventative for more than six months. In-clinic testing revealed the presence of microfilariae on blood drop analysis, but was negative on an in-house antigen test. TVMDL received whole blood (EDTA)…
Twelve 11 and 12-week-old broiler breeder pullets from two farms were submitted to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) in Center, Texas for a diagnostic evaluation. The birds were submitted with a clinical history of having bumps on the face. Upon clinical examination, the birds exhibited nodular protuberances, approximately 1 cm in length,…
The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) frequently works on Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) cases. Multiple factors lead to a BRD diagnosis, leading many to refer to the syndrome as Bovine Respiratory Disease Complex (BRDC). Affected cattle commonly display signs of fever, lethargy, nasal discharge, and coughing. Some of the factors involved in BRDC are stressors…
Blood was collected during a routine pre-purchase examination on a horse and submitted to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) in College Station for drug testing. Serum was extracted using methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) and analyzed by liquid chromatography – tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Romifidine was confirmed in the sample by LC-MS/MS. Romifidine…
Haemonchosis refers to parasitic infection with Haemonchus contortus, a blood-sucking parasite that lives in the abomasum. This parasite is also known as the barber pole worm due to the macroscopic appearance of the worms. Heavy loads of H. contortus can cause anemia, hypoproteinemia, weight loss, and death. Infection is best described in small ruminants (sheep and goats). Camelids…
A 3-year-old, pet, domestic ferret (Mustela putorius furo) was found dead suddenly and was sent to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) in College Station for postmortem examination. The ferret was diagnosed with heartworm disease and caval syndrome at necropsy. Three adult heartworms were found in the heart, filling the pulmonary artery, right…
A dead one-year-old female Red Sex-Link chicken was presented to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory in Gonzales, Texas for necropsy examination. Clinical history noted that it was found dead with no previous clinical illness noticed. The bird was fed an organic layer feed, vegetables, and fruit. History also noted the bird had no…
A small piece of carpal bone from an eight-year-old domestic short haired cat (DSH) was submitted to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) for histopathology. The provided history stated the cat had a lytic and proliferative lesion of the “carpal bones”. An impression smear of the boney lesion was also submitted. The slides…
An entire globe from an 8-year-old cat was submitted to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL). The patient had a history of bilateral glaucoma, but the left eye recently became ulcerated, so enucleation was elected. On histopathology, lining the interior aspect of the globe and completely disrupting intraocular structures was a spindle cell…
An amputated toe from an 11-year-old, female spayed, domestic shorthaired cat was submitted to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) in College Station for histopathology. This cat had multiple swollen nails on the front feet. Histologically, the distal phalangeal bone (P3) and nailbed were heavily infiltrated by neoplastic epithelial cells (Figure 1). In…