Page 576 - The Veterinary Laboratory and Field Manual 3rd Edition

Necropsy guidelines 513

one side of the joint. Applying tension to Open the mouth and examine the tongue and
open the joint space continue to incise peri- choanae looking for any erosions, ulcers, pro-
articular connective tissue until the joint can liferative lesions or exudate.
be opened. • Vent: check the vent and note any soiling of
• Note the quality and quantity of synovial the feathers.
fluid. Normal synovial fluid should be tan to • Feet and legs: closely examine the un-feathered
orange and viscous. skin of the legs and feet. Note any areas of
• Inspect the synovium and articular cartilage. ulceration or proliferative lesions. Pay partic-
Note any defects or areas of roughening. ular attention to the soles of the feet as this
is a common site for bacterial skin infection
(‘Bumblefoot’) which can be a route of entry
Removing the eye
for bacteria causing septicaemia.
• To complete necropsy examination both • Uropygeal gland: the uropygeal or ‘preen’
eyes should be removed. This is particu- gland is located on the dorsum at the base of
larly important if the history suggests visual the tail. It is vestigial or not present in cer-
impairment but should be done in all cases if tain orders of birds. Swelling or proliferative
time allows. lesions should be noted as infection and neo-
• The eyes will be removed with the extraocu- plasia can occur at this location.
lar tissues.
• Make a circumferential incision through the
eyelids around the edge of the orbit. Using Internal examination
scissors, grasp the sclera, cut the extraocular
connective tissue around the outer surface of 1 Before opening the bird it is advisable to wet
the globe until the optic nerve can be viewed. the feathers with soapy water and then pluck
Incise the optic nerve and remove the eye. the ventral aspect of the body from the neck
• Fix the eyes in formalin. to the vent.
2 Skin the ventral aspect of the carcass by mak-
ing a long incision through the skin from the
A2.5 Necropsy technique: avian ventral neck to the vent and completely skin
ventral aspect of the bird. Assess hydration
Follows demonstration video on the website. status by the tackiness of the subcutaneous
tissues.
3 Locate the thymus: in young birds the thy-
External examination mus can be found subcutaneously on both
sides of the neck. Thymic tissue is multifocal
• Weigh the body. and is clustered around the jugular vein and
• Plumage: examine the plumage and note any vagus nerve. If the thymus cannot be visual-
broken or burnt feathers or abnormalities. ized it is advisable to take a section of skin
• Eyes and infraorbital sinuses: note any ulcers, from around the expected location and fix
vesicles, proliferative lesions on the palpebral for histology. Serial sections of the area can
margins. Note any swelling of the infraorbital be taken for histological examination which
sinus. may reveal thymic tissue.
• Beak: examine the beak and note any prolifer- 4 Luxate the hindlimbs by applying pressure
ative lesions at the mucocutaneous junction. to the coxofemoral joints so the bird sits

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