A retrospective study of disease in captive kangaroos from Oklahoma State University, 1995-2009

The antemortem biopsy records (5 cases) and necropsy records (34 cases) were reviewed from 39 kangaroo case submissions during a 14-year period to the Oklahoma State University and the Oklahoma Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. The most common types of diseases in the kangaroos, based on necropsy examination, was disease of the alimentary tract (12 cases), pneumonia (6 cases), and disseminated toxoplasmosis (5 cases). The cause of disease was not determined in 6 case submissions. Based on histopathologic findings, clostridial enteritis/colitis was suspected in 2 kangaroos. Coccidian parasites were identified within histologic sections of the small intestine in 1 kangaroo. Pasteurella sp. (1 case) and Bacteroides sp. (1 case) were isolated from the lung in 2 cases of pneumonia. Most (77.3%) of disease in this study in the kangaroos with known ages occurred in animals older than 1 year. Two neoplasms were detected in the antemortem biopsy samples from 1 case.