Veterinary session

Small exotic mammals are gaining popularity as household pets, and, similarly to dogs and cats, species specific diseases affect them; however, significantly fewer comprehensive epidemiological studies have been done on small exotic mammals. The aim of the present study is to compare biopsy results of small exotic mammal pets to their clinical signs at time of presentation. Twenty-eight samples were biopsied for histopathological review from patients at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Budapest exotic veterinary clinic. The samples were examined over a four-month period. Nineteen samples originated from guinea pigs, three from rabbits, five from rats, and one sample from a Syrian hamster. Different neoplastic and non-neoplastic processes were diagnosed based on routine histopathology. To calculate the incidence of lesions, the average monthly visitations for each species was compared to the average monthly detection of lesions during the four-month collection period. This revealed that rats had the highest incidence of lesions per month with 50%, followed by 14.6% for guinea pigs, 7.6% for hamsters, and 4.2% for rabbits. Guinea pigs had the most organ systems affected (n=5), followed by rabbits and rats (n=2) , and then the hamster (n=1). In guinea pigs, most lesions originated from the uterus (52.6%). In general, the reproductive tract was the most affected organ (46.4%) with uterine lesions being predominately non-neoplastic, constituting hyperplastic proliferations (58.3%) and always coinciding with cystic ovaries. But neoplastic alterations made up 53% of all small exotic mammals’ lesions reviewed and of those 60% were malignant. Carcinomas were proven to have the highest incidence regarding malignant neoplasms (56%), most frequently located in the mammary tissue (60%). In the study, systemic clinical signs were generally absent and only 21.4% of the animals showed prominent systemic signs. It is important for all general practitioner veterinarians to have proper knowledge and confidence to clinically examine and diagnose such animals. These results give veterinary clinicians useful information on possible diseases and processes of small exotic mammals.