Three endemic vulture species Gyps bengalensis , Gyps indicus and Gyps tenuirostris are critically endangered following dramatic declines in South Asia resulting from exposure to diclofenac, a veterinary drug present in the livestock carcasses that they scavenge. Diclofenac is widely used globally and could present a risk to Gyps species from other regions. In this study, we test the toxicity of diclofenac to a Eurasian ( Gyps fulvus ) and an African ( Gyps africanus ) species, neither of which is threatened. A dose of 0.8 mg kg −1 of diclofenac was highly toxic to both species, indicating that they are at least as sensitive to diclofenac as G. bengalensis , for which we estimate an LD 50 of 0.1–0.2 mg kg −1 . We suggest that diclofenac is likely to be toxic to all eight Gyps species, and that G. africanus , which is phylogenetically close to G. bengalensis , would be a suitable surrogate for the safety testing of alternative drugs to diclofenac.

Background: Despite treatment, many dogs still die of complications related to canine parvoviral (CPV) enteritis. Effective prognostication would be beneficial in managing this disease.Hypothesis: We hypothesize that the occurrence of leukocytopenias at admission and at 24 and 48 hours after admission, and changes in absolute leukocyte counts over time, could be used to predict outcome.Animals: Sixty-two puppies with confirmed CPV. Methods: A prospective study was performed. CBC was performed daily until discharge or death (in which case a postmortem examination was performed).Results: Of the nonsurvivors (10/62; 16%), 9 died because of complications of the disease and 1 was euthanized because of a poor prognosis. There was a statistical significant difference in the occurrence of leukocytopenias between groups at 24 and 48 hours postadmission. The survivors showed a significant increase over time in certain leukocyte types (specifically lymphocytes) compared with values at admission. The positive predictive value for survivors was high. Nonsurvivors had marked thymic and lymphoid atrophy and marked bone marrow hypocellularity.Conclusion: An accurate prognosis could be obtained at 24 hours after admission by evaluating the change in total leukocyte, band neutrophil, lymphocyte, monocyte, and eosinophil counts.

Three Gyps vulture species are on the brink of extinction in South Asia owing to the veterinary non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) diclofenac. Carcasses of domesticated ungulates are the main food source for Asia's vultures and birds die from kidney failure after consuming diclofenac-contaminated tissues. Here, we report on the safety testing of the NSAID ketoprofen, which was not reported to cause mortality in clinical treatment of scavenging birds and is rapidly eliminated from livestock tissues. Safety testing was undertaken using captive non-releasable Cape griffon vultures ( Gyps coprotheres ) and wild-caught African white-backed vultures ( G. africanus ), both previously identified as susceptible to diclofenac and suitable surrogates. Ketoprofen doses ranged from 0.5 to 5 mg kg −1 vulture body weight, based upon recommended veterinary guidelines and maximum levels of exposure for wild vultures (estimated as 1.54 mg kg −1 ). Doses were administered by oral gavage or through feeding tissues from cattle dosed with ketoprofen at 6 mg kg −1 cattle body weight, before slaughter. Mortalities occurred at dose levels of 1.5 and 5 mg kg −1 vulture body weight (within the range recommended for clinical treatment) with the same clinical signs as observed for diclofenac. Surveys of livestock carcasses in India indicate that toxic levels of residual ketoprofen are already present in vulture food supplies. Consequently, we strongly recommend that ketoprofen is not used for veterinary treatment of livestock in Asia and in other regions of the world where vultures access livestock carcasses. The only alternative to diclofenac that should be promoted as safe for vultures is the NSAID meloxicam.