In the last 30 years, concerns about animal emotions have emerged from general public but also professionals and scientists. Animals are now considered as sentient beings, capable of experiencing such fear or pleasure. Understanding animals’ is complex important if we want to guarantee them best care, management, welfare. The main objectives paper are, first, give a brief overview various conte...

OBJECTIVES To identify cases, describe the outbreak, implement control measures, and identify factors associated with infection or protection from infection, including contact with animals and hand hygiene practices. DESIGN Case finding, a case-control study of 45 cases and 188 controls, environmental investigation, and molecular subtyping of clinical and environmental Escherichia coli O157:H...

Studies of urban wildlife are important because they can give us insight into both how animals adapt to novel environments and how some species survive and prosper in human-dominated landscapes. Urban zoological institutions provide an ideal setting for research on such species. We report on a study of the behavior and ecology of opossums (Didelphis virginiana) on the grounds of the St. Louis Z...

The negative effects of loud anthropic sounds on non-human health and welfare urges attention. We report here the results a technical study we conducted attending Public Prosecutor’s request at Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil. A Civil Inquiry informed against nocive human concentration captive free-living animals around municipal zoo. zoo is part natural protected area that paradoxically was used as...

The extent to which the presence of zoo visitors influences animal behavior, and the ways in which animal activity influences visitor interest and perception, are of great interest to zoological parks. Visitors have been variously characterized as being enriching for zoo animals, as being stressors, and generally as influencing behavior in measurable ways. Most studies have focused on primates,...

The digestive system of the beira (Dorcatragus megalotis), a small East African antelope, has not been described previously. We present anatomical data collected from the only known captive population of the species, allowing for a first understanding of the morphophysiological ‘type’ of this species. The gastrointestinal anatomy was quantified by weights, dimensions and areas, measured in a to...

An increased incidence of cataract and fatty liver in plains viscachas (Lagostomus maximus) was noted for many years at the Zurich Zoo (Switzerland). Based on elevated serum fructosamine and glucose, diabetes mellitus was diagnosed; and these parameters normalized when the diet of the animals was changed from a low-fiber to a high-fiber diet. In this present study, 177 necropsy reports from bef...

Using tracking dogs to locate wild Florida panthers, Howard and other National Zoo researchers conducted reproductive exams on many free-ranging panthers and animals that had been killed. Results indicated that the animals had severe reproductive problems, including extremely poor semen quality with low sperm numbers and high sperm abnormalities. The Florida pumas also had severe health problem...