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1 April 2000 Septicemic Pasteurellosis in Free-ranging Neonatal Pronghorn in Oregon
Mike R. Dunbar, Mark J. Wolcott, Richard B. Rimler, Brenda M. Berlowski
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Abstract

As part of a study to determine the cause(s) of population decline and low survival of pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) neonates on Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge (HMNAR), Oregon (USA), 55 of 104 neonates captured during May 1996 and 1997 were necropsied (n = 28, 1996; n = 27, 1997) to determine cause of death. Necropsies were conducted on fawns that died during May, June, or July of each year. The objectives of this study were to report the occurrence and pathology of pasteurellosis in neonates and determine if the isolated strain of Pasteurella multocida was unique. Septicemic pasteurellosis, caused by P. multocida, was diagnosed as the cause of death for two neonates in May and June 1997. Necropsy findings included widely scattered petechial and ecchymotic hemorrhages found over a large portion of the subcutaneous tissue, meninges of the brain, epicardium, skeletal muscle, and serosal surface of the thorasic and abdominal cavities. Histological examination of lung tissues revealed diffuse congestion and edema and moderate to marked multifocal in-filtrate of macrophages, neutrophils, and numerous bacteria within many terminal bronchioles and alveoli. Pasteurella multocida sero-types A:3,4, and B:1 were isolated from several tissues including lung, intestinal, thorasic fluid, and heart blood. Each B:1 isolate had DNA restriction endonuclease fingerprint profiles distinct from isolates previously characterized from domestic cattle, swan (Olor spp.), moose (Alces alces), and pronghorn from Montana (USA). This is the first report of pasteurellosis in pronghorn from Oregon and the B:1 isolates appear to be unique in comparison to DNA fingerprint profiles from selected domestic and wild species.

Dunbar, Wolcott, Rimler, and Berlowski: Septicemic Pasteurellosis in Free-ranging Neonatal Pronghorn in Oregon
Mike R. Dunbar, Mark J. Wolcott, Richard B. Rimler, and Brenda M. Berlowski "Septicemic Pasteurellosis in Free-ranging Neonatal Pronghorn in Oregon," Journal of Wildlife Diseases 36(2), 383-388, (1 April 2000). https://doi.org/10.7589/0090-3558-36.2.383
Received: 9 July 1998; Published: 1 April 2000
KEYWORDS
Antilocapra americana
Pasteurella multocida
Pasteurellosis
pronghorn
survey
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