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Comparison of comprehensive health score in North American housed giraffe and free-ranging giraffe from South Africa

As in humans, stress is evident in many animal species and has been correlated to disease prevalence; yet a value for reliable quantification of chronic stress is unestablished. During stressful events, allostasis, an adaptive process, is initiated by physiologic systems to maintain or reestablish homeostasis to protect an organism’s viability. Over time, the acclimation to frequent stress causes systematic dysregulation, leading to the phenomena of increased allostatic load. In recent studies, allostatic load has been assessed in animal species via

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Spinal cord injury during recovery from anaesthesia in a giraffe

ANAESTHESIA of giraffes carries particular risks of morbidity and mortality as a result of the physical characteristics of a large, longlegged, long-necked animal with a heavy head; death is reported in approximately one in 10 cases (Benbow and Lyon 2001, Bush and others 2002, Flach and others 2002). Mortality may relate to physical damage or occasionally regurgitation and aspiration (Citino and Bush 2007). This short communication describes an accident during recovery of a giraffe from an otherwise straightforward anaesthetic.

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Soil correlates and mortality from Giraffe Skin Disease in Tanzania

Giraffe skin disease (GSD) is a disorder of undetermined etiology that causes lesions on the forelimbs of Masai giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) in Tanzania, East Africa. We examined soil correlates of prevalence of GSD from 951 giraffe in 14 sites in Tanzania, and estimated mortality using 3 yr of longitudinal mark–recapture data from 382 giraffe with and without GSD lesions, in Tarangire National Park (TNP). Spatial variation in GSD prevalence was best explained by soil fertility, measured as cation exchange

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New Thoughts on Peracute Mortality in Giraffe

Peracute mortality syndrome, or giraffe wasting disease, has been a leading cause of mortality in giraffe since the 1970s. It generally presents as acute death without premonitory signs. It is characterized by serous atrophy of adipose tissue and weight loss. Other lesions are non specific. Several articles have been published suggesting a potential nutritional component.

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Dental Disease and Serous Atrophy of Fat Syndrome in Captive Giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis)

A condition characterized by serous atrophy of fat (SAF) has been reported as leading to peracute mortality in a number of giraffes at several institutions during the last 3 decades. These mortalities were originally attributed to insufficient protein and high fiber diets but were also associated with stress, other nutritional imbalances, and infectious and toxic conditions. A recent report attributes similar giraffe morbidity and mortality to hypoglycemia and chronic energy malnutrition mainly in younger giraffes.

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The art and science of giraffe (Giraffa camilopardalis) immobilization/anesthesia

The anesthesia/immobilization of giraffe is a unique specialty due to a combination of problems usually encountered in the procedure resulting in mortality or morbidity to the patient. This paper presents a historical description of the early drugs and methods and documents of the advances made in giraffe anesthesia during the last three decades. Also included are the current suggestions for both standing sedation and anesthesia/immobilization of this unique species. Suggestions include managing the giraffe prior to, during and following an

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The giraffe and its food resource in the Serengeti

The dynamics of the giraffe population of the Serengeti were quantified to ascertain the response of the population to the increasing biomass of the available browse resource. Aerial counts conducted in 1971 and 1976 together with analyses of fecundity and mortality data suggest a rate of population increase of some 5–6% per annum. Compared with the dynamics of a stable giraffe population in Nairobi National Park, the sub-adult components of the Serengeti regional populations are larger and juvenile growth rates

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