Managing the Health of Captive Groups of Reptiles and Amphibians

Infectious Stomatitis in Captive Salvator Merianae Lizards

“…Th e incidence of bacterial diseases in captive lizards is oft en associated with a compromised immune system resulting from overcrowding, trauma, nutritional defi ciencies, infections, and excessively low temperatures that can predispose normal microbial fl ora to act as opportunistic pathogens (Mader, 2006;Hedley, 2016;Van Zanten and Simpson, 2021). Regarding predisposing factors, overcrowding and poor management as promoters of stomatitis were ruled out.…”

“…Indeed, we have optimized the zootechnical management of captive S. merianae, as well as the breeding conditions in which these lizards are kept and reproduced. Th is includes spacious enclosures with over 2 m²/ animal, shelters resembling their natural habitat, dirt fl oors for digging, and other elements of environmental enrichment (Manes, 2016;Van Zanten and Simpson, 2021). Although the animals are fed a diet specifi cally designed for this species (Vega Parry and Manes, 2000), maintaining a sustained mono diet for approximately 20 years, it is likely that they require supplementation of vitamins A, D, and E. Vitamin A defi ciencies have been linked to stomatitis and infl ammation of the upper respiratory tract (Herrera Ramírez, 2008; Rodríguez Molano, 2015).…”

The importance of quantifying fitness-determining traits throughout life to assess the application of reproductive technologies for amphibian species recovery

“…For example, suboptimal development and performance has been linked to inadequate intake of dietary antioxidants such as Vitamin A (Ferrie et al, 2014;Rodrıǵuez and Pessier, 2014) and carotenoids (Ogilvy et al, 2012;Silla et al, 2016), high cholesterol intake has been linked to ocular disease (Boss and Plummer, 2022), and diets deficient in calcium, phosphorous and vitamin D 3 (coupled with inappropriate provision of UVB light and low temperatures) are known to cause metabolic bone disease and neurological and musculoskeletal abnormalities (Ferrie et al, 2014). Although species will differ in their needs, and rearing protocols will need to be developed and optimised on a species-by-species basis, in recent years detailed guidelines for the husbandry and welfare of amphibians in captivity have emerged in the literature, providing an excellent basis for developing protocols (Ferrie et al, 2014;Tapley et al, 2015;Karlsdottir et al, 2021;Linhoff et al, 2021;Van Zanten and Simpson, 2021).…”

Parásitos gastrointestinales zoonóticos y no zoonóticos en ranas de un río urbano tropical de Costa Rica

“…Por otra parte, los anfibios en cautiverio poseen diversos factores de exposición que los hace susceptibles a infecciones y reinfecciones parasitarias, por ejemplo: el estado del sistema inmunológico, el estado etario, condiciones inadecuadas de higiene de los recintos, la temperatura y humedad relativa, así como el hacinamiento y la nutrición, entre otros (van Zanten & Simpson, 2021;Hallinger et al, 2020;Burraco & Gomez-Mestre, 2016), mientras que los anfibios que se encuentran en vida libre poseen múltiples y complejas condiciones ambientales, porque interactúan muchos factores que no pueden ser controlados, y por esto se observan prevalencias de infecciones parasitarias de hasta un 90% (Hallinger et al, 2020;Amin et al, 2012).…”