Ovariectomy in Mouflons (Ovis aries) in the Field: Application of Innovative Surgical and Anaesthesiological Techniques

Abstract

This report describes an innovative technique of ovariectomy useful for the birth control in the mouflon population. Thirteen female mouflons in reproductive age were submitted to ovariectomy via midline and left flank, using the AESCULAP CAIMAN® Seal and Cut device. The CAIMAN® was useful for clamping the ovary, stapling the vessels, and cutting in one stroke, thus reducing the surgery times. The day after the gonadectomy all animals were mobilized to another enclosure. In this study, no intraoperative and post-operative complications were observed, and all animals were gonadectomized without side effects. This study sets the guidelines for the surgical sterilization of mouflons in the field using anesthetic protocols and high-quality surgical procedures.

Ovariectomy in Mouflons in Field Condition: Comparative Assessment of Midventral and Flank Laparotomy Approaches

“…Moreover, the use of vascular dissection and coagulation device allows a reduction in surgical time and safety in tissues bleeding control as reported by Lacitignola et al 2022 andCicirelli et al 2023. In this study, in both groups, Caiman® (Aesculap -Tuttlingen) was used to perform the surgeries and there were no intra-or post-operative complications.…”

“…The day before the procedure, the mouflons were captured in a funnel-shaped enclosure. The day of gonadectomy, the mouflons were captured from the enclosure by operators and contained for premedication (Cicirelli et al, 2023). The premedication consisted of xylazine (Nerfasin® 20 mg/mL, ATI, Ozzano dell'Emilia, Italy) 0.1 mg/kg and an association of tiletamine and zolazepam (Zoletil® 50/50 mg/mL, Virbac, Milan, Italy) 4 mg/kg, mixed in the same syringe and injected in the brachiocephalicus muscle.…”

Short- and Long-Term Storage of Non-Domesticated European Mouflon (Ovis aries musimon) Cumulus–Oocyte Complexes Recovered in Field Conditions

“…Ovaries were collected after the ovariectomy of female mouflons, from 10 animals between 18 and 28 months and one prepubertal animal of 5 months, all originating from Giglio Island and relocated to the Marsiliana Nature Reserve, Grosseto, Italy [ 4 ]. The ovaries were processed immediately after the ovariectomy in field conditions.…”

“…The European mouflon ( Ovis aries musimon ) is a non-domesticated and highly adaptable medium-sized ungulate [ 4 ]. Native populations have resided on the island of Sardinia (Italy) and Corsica (France) since the Neolithic Age and, in the last century, have been transferred across Europe [ 5 ].…”

“…The island inhabitation of relocated animals served as a “time capsule” in which mouflons maintained ancestral genetic traits no longer detectable in the current native Sardinian population [ 7 ]. However, the relocation of mouflons to this island was challenging, due to the ecological/sociological competition with native species, mating with domestic sheep, damage to the present ecosystem and cultivated crops, and mouflons’ progressive numerical increase [ 4 ]. Procedures such as ovariectomy and orchiectomy surgery, performed under field conditions, can be used to control the animals’ overpopulation and avoid selective culling of mouflons [ 4 ].…”