Postcapture Point-of-Care Blood Lactate Measurement in Zoo-Housed Cattle Egrets (Bubulcus ibis)
Michael Warshaw1, Rachel L Ferris2, Kari Musgrave2
1Saint Louis Zoo, St Louis, MO 63110, USA, mwarshaw@stlzoo.org.
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Blood lactate concentration is a fast and reliable point-of-care metric used in both human and veterinary medicine to indirectly assess tissue perfusion. Blood lactate concentration is also frequently used as a prognostic indicator for multiple disease processes in veterinary medicine. The goals of this study were to evaluate point-of-care venous lactate concentrations in a group of cattle egrets (Bubulcus ibis) maintained in a zoo to determine if order of net capture had a significant effect on blood lactate concentrations and evaluate the association between lactate concentration and routine blood diagnostic test results. Blood samples were obtained from 10 cattle egrets housed together in a holding area as part of routine quarantine procedures. Animals were captured via net in pairs, quarantine examinations and sample collection were completed, and birds were placed in a crate for holding prior to net capture of the next pair. All birds had blood samples collected for a complete blood cell count, avian biochemistry panel, and lactate concentration. Blood lactate concentrations were obtained with the Nova Biomedical Lactate Plus point-of-care lactate meter. The mean blood lactate concentration was 12.6 mmol/L (range, 9.3-17.4 mmol/L). Capture order was not significantly associated with blood lactate concentration (P = 0.60). There was a significant positive correlation between lactate concentration and sodium (P = 0.04). There were no significant relationships between blood lactate concentration and standard complete blood cell count or biochemical values. This study found postcapture blood lactate concentrations in the cattle egrets that were unexpectedly high when compared with published avian values and found that the order in which the animal was processed in the capture event was not associated with blood lactate concentration. Further research is warranted to determine the value of blood lactate concentration trends in this species.
