Todayโs path rounds are on ๐ก๐๐ซ๐๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐๐ฌ๐, more scientifically known as ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ข๐ ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฎ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ญ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฌ! This post is inspired by my goat Tux, who decided to eat a 2.5โ long screw this weekend.
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐๐ฌ๐ is the colloquial term for when a ruminant eats a piece of something pointy, and the pointy thing pokes through the wall of their ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฆ, one of their four chambers in their stomach.
๐๐ก๐จ ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
This condition is pretty much only found in ruminants! However, it is most common in cattle.
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
As mentioned before, this condition occurs when the cow eats something pointy, like nails, screws, pieces of fencing wire, bits of scrap metal, etc. Cattle donโt really care what they eat, and because they donโt really chew feed before swallowing, they often end up eating bits of things they shouldnโt.
๐๐ก๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฆ?
Once the pointy thing enters the reticulum (the first chamber of the ruminant stomach), they tend to get lodged there in the honeycomb-shaped mucosa. The reticulum contracts to move feed material through, and this contraction can lead to the pointy thing poking through the reticulum wall over time.
This hole allows feed material and bacteria from the stomach to leak into the abdomen, causing ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ญ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฌ, or severe inflammation of the abdominal surface. The object can also penetrate through the diaphragm into the ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐ฎ๐ฆ (the covering over the heart) and cause a ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฌ. All of this is very painful for the cow, as you can imagine! In the case of pericarditis, it can even lead to heart failure because the pus in the pericardium prevents the heart from beating properly.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐ข๐๐ ๐ง๐จ๐ฌ๐๐?
Typically this is diagnosed based on clinical signs, like reluctance to move, lameness, and grunting when pressure is placed on the sternum. Cows with more chronic cases may have decreased feed intake and low milk production. If the pericardium is involved, the cow often has muffled heart sounds due to the fluid accumulation in the pericardial sac. The veterinarian may also do bloodwork to help confirm that there is an infection going on. To identify the presence of a pointy thing, an ultrasound or X-ray can be used to identify the metallic material in the reticulum.
At necropsy, we can occasionally find the pointy thing that caused the problem, but more often than not we see the results of it being there. You can often see massive amounts of ๐๐ข๐๐ซ๐ข๐ง (part of what forms blood clots) adhered to the reticulum in the area where the pointy thing poked through, as well as throughout the abdomen. With bacterial involvement, you can also see a large amount of pus! Gross.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐๐? ๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐?
Treatment is primarily surgical, where the rumen is opened and the objects are removed from the reticulum. Antibiotics are also very helpful in getting the infection under control for these animals. For prevention, keeping animals in a clean environment free of metal debris is the best, but since this cannot always be done, cattle can be fed a large magnet that becomes stuck in their reticulum. This magnet grabs onto pointy metal things and prevents them from poking through the reticulum wall. Crazy!
๐๐ก๐จ๐ญ๐จ๐ฌ
1-2) Examples of pointy things poking through the lovely honeycomb mucosa of the reticulum.
3) An enlarged pericardium from hardware disease.
4) The same pericardium after being openedโฆ look at all that pus and grossness!
5) The heart of a hardware disease cow covered in mats of fibrin from an infection in the pericardial sac.
๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐๐ฌ
Maxie, G. Jubb, Kennedy and Palmerโs Pathology of Domestic Animals, Volume 3. Sixth Edition.
Constable, P.D. Traumatic reticuloperitonitis. Merck Veterinary Manual 2015.
Photos 1-4 courtesy of University of Calgary Diagnostic Services Unit.
Photo 5 courtesy of Noahโs Arkive.
