Diagnostic and therapeutic experiences with wild caught red-cheeked mud turtles (Kinosternon cruentatum)

Summary Background: Following the EU restriction on the import of Red-eared sliders (Trachemy scripta ssp.), there has been an increasing demand by private keepers for the small sized, easy to keep mud turtles (Kinosternon spp.). Majority of the specimens entering the market comes from the import of wild caught speci mens. The health assessment of the wild caught animals and the cause of mor tality during the acclimatization period has not been investigated in details. Material and Methods: The study animals were collected from the wild in Nica ragua, during the dry season, and were shipped to Hungary for a captive breeding project. Thorough necropsy and pathologic examination was performed on indi viduals died within the first 48 hours after the import, to get information about mortality and to establish treatment protocols for the rest of the group. Results and Discussion: The mortality of 5 individuals, out of the group of 28, were necropsied according to the standards of pathology. Bacterial culturing, par asite identification and histopathologic examinations were performed, whenever it was necessary. Necropsy results supported that the poor condition of the animals was highly influenced by nematode and fluke infestation, causing chronic inflammation and hyperplasia of the gastric wall. The parasite infestation of the remaining animals was successfully treated with Levamisol hydrochloride (10 mg/bw po. + 1 g/m3 in tank water) and with the combination of Praziquantel/Fenbendazole (Quanifen® 1 tabl/10kg bw, po.), repeated three times. Two animals had pulmonary lesions,cor responding to necrotic/fibrinoid pneumonia, that may be related to transport conditions, and where Escherichia coli, sensitive to enrofloxacin and moderately sensitive to amoxicillin, were cultured. The remaining animals were treated with Amoxicillin trihydrate (1.5g/m3 in tank water). Surviving individuals increased bod yweight, acclimatized and laid eggs after 2.5 months. The case emphasize the use of a necropsy based treatment among reptiles, a common practice with large group of animals, especially during the acclimatization of wild caught animals