This study aimed to establish the incidence of skin tumors (cutaneous proliferative lesions of neoplastic or non-neoplastic nature) in dogs diagnosed by histopathological evaluation at the Veterinary Pathology Laboratory (LPV) of the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) in a 10-year (2007-2016) historical series. Of the 1945 histopathological diagnoses made in this period, 503 were skin biopsies, and 617 dermatological problems (87 dogs, 17.3%, presented more than one positive diagnosis) were found. Of the 617 diagnoses of dermatopathy, 546 (88.49%) were tumors and 71 (11.51%) were non-tumorous alterations. The 546 conditions more profoundly studied were from 453 dogs, 468 (85.7%) neoplastic and 78 (14.3%) non-neoplastic tumors. The 468 neoplasms were classified as follows: 230 benign (49.14%), 215 malignant (45.94%), 23 borderline (epitheliomas) (4.91%), 51.92% (243/468) mesenchymal, 42.74% (200/468) epithelial, 4.91% (23/468) melanocytic, and 0.43% (2/468) metastatic (mammary gland). The most commonly diagnosed neoplastic dermatopathies were mastocytoma (14.7%) and lipoma (7.48%). Among the 78 non-neoplastic conditions (14.3%), epidermal inclusion cyst (39.74%) and trichogranuloma (15.38%) were the most frequent. Canine dermatopathies accounted for 26% of the biopsy files of the LPV-UFBA. Distinct simultaneous dermatological problems were frequently found in the dogs assessed (one in six). Considering that these conditions can present with different cellular origin and biological behavior, it is crucial that histopathological evaluation be performed in fragments from the different cutaneous lesions.

Pathological mineralization is the abnormal deposition of minerals in body tissues, previously injured or not. In these lesions, in addition to calcium, other minerals can be found at lower concentrations. Classically, mineralization is divided into two types: dystrophic and metastatic. However, currently, there is no consensus among researchers on the type of mineralization that occurs in uremic dogs. The objective of this study was to elucidate the type of pathological mineralization that occurs in dogs with uremic syndrome through the correlation of biochemical examinations with gross and histopathological changes, given the existence of controversial information on this theme in the specialized literature. The Shapiro-Wilk, D’Agostino and Pearson tests were used to evaluate data normality distribution, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to compare the data between more than two groups. Additionally, the Dunnett’s multiple comparison test was used in the comparison between the Control Group (CG) and the Experimental Groups (G1, G2, and G3). Serum levels of urea, creatinine, total and ionized calcium, phosphorus, calcium-phosphorus product (CPP), parathyroid hormone (PTH), and albumin of 40 azotemic dogs with chronic kidney disease (CKD) were evaluated. Dogs were categorized by degree of azotemia (mild, moderate, and severe). Ionized hypocalcemia was observed in 97.5% (39/40) of the dogs, and no animals presented ionized hypercalcemia. Hyperphosphatemia was frequent (62.5%), especially in dogs with severe azotemia. PTH concentration increased with progression of azotemia, and high PTH levels were verified in 100% of the dogs with severe azotemia. CPP >60mg2/dl2 was observed in 75% (30/40) of the dogs. Of the 29 dogs that died during the study period, 16 were necropsied. Soft tissue mineralization was observed in 93.7% (15/16) of these dogs at gross and histopathological evaluation (HE and Von Kossa), regardless of the degree of azotemia, in nine organs/tissues: kidneys (75%), lungs (50%), stomach (31.2%), heart (25%), larynx (25%), intercostal muscles (25%), aorta (6.2%), intestines (6.2%), and tongue (6.2%). In one animal, the serosa of all segments of the small intestine showed whitish, rough, irregular, multifocal plaques of varying sizes, confirmed by histopathology as dystrophic mineralization of the longitudinal outer muscular layer, which presented necrosis of coagulation and of the intestinal serosa. This intestinal lesion has not been described in dogs with uremic syndrome to date. In conclusion, the laboratory and histopathologic data previously described, especially regarding tissue and vascular mineralization, which occur in association with previous degenerative/necrotic lesions in the absence of hypercalcemia in dogs with CKD, assist with clarifying inconsistencies found in the existing literature. Therefore, conceptually, mineralization that occurs in uremic dogs should be considered dystrophic.

Congenital malformations are morphofunctional abnormalities of tissues and organs that can occur during embryonic or fetal development in all animal species. Among these, dicephalus is characterized by the development of an individual with two heads and two necks, due to the total duplication of facial, cranial, and brain structures. Reports of dicephalus in cattle are scarce and do not normally emphasize radiographic and bone anatomy characteristics. The objective was to describe a case of a stillborn dicephalus calf. The duplication of the head, brain, neck, and two thoracic vertebral columns, isolated from each other, with 13 vertebrae each was verified radiographically. There were 13 pairs of ribs, the ones on the right side articulated with the thoracic spine on the right and the left ones with the spine on the left. Caudally at T13, there was only one lumbar spine, sacral and coccygeal. In the ventrodorsal projection, L1, L2, L3, and L6 had the shape of a butterfly (suggestive of hemivertebrae). At necropsy, in addition to craniocervical and spinal morphological changes, collapsed lungs, duplication of the heart with anastomosis between the aortic arches of the hearts, and duplication of the upper digestive tract were observed. Additionally, there was arthrogryposis of the pelvic limbs. Corpse maceration, followed by the skeletal assembly, showed the bone changes previously observed and confirmed the suspicion of hemivertebrae.

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