Secondary degenerative arthropathy (osteoarthrosis) of the hip joints in ageing, free‐living koalas

Managing Aged Animals in Zoos to Promote Positive Welfare: A Review and Future Directions

“…Proper feeding and nutrition are critical to physical health of animals of all ages, and likewise maintaining animals at an appropriate body weight can mitigate health risks associated with being overweight at any life stage. Maintaining a proper body weight throughout an animal’s life can help avert the development of some conditions as the animal ages, and weight loss can help relieve mobility issues or symptoms of degenerative joint problems [ 25 , 49 , 51 , 70 , 71 , 72 ]. Weight loss is not always desirable, however, and decreased appetite and associated weight loss can be indicative of pain or disease [ 45 , 49 ].…”

“…Degenerative joint problems have been documented both in vivo and post mortem in a large number of species (see Table 1 ). Many specific diagnoses are encompassed within the category of degenerative joint disease, however degenerative joint issues share many symptoms despite different underlying causes: limited range of motion, swelling of joints, changes to gait or posture, muscle weakness or instability, or changes in overall mobility (e.g., stiffness, difficulty laying down or standing up [ 25 , 49 , 51 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 109 ]). The widespread nature of degenerative joint changes related to age indicate this is a natural progression of ageing in vertebrates; however, differences in body structure and physiology cause species specific differences in which joints are most affected.…”

The establishment of a Living Genome Resource Bank utilising genetic analysis and assisted breeding technology: a case study on the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus)

“…Despite those few studies that identified reproductive anomalies in male koalas, there is limited information available regarding their reproductive potential, as previous research has primarily focused on the effects of disease on the male reproductive tract, rather than congenital anomalies (Brown et al, 1984;Brown et al, 1987;Hemsley and Canfield, 1996;Johnston et al, 2015b;Johnston and Holt, 2014). However, other fitness traits associated with inbreeding have been identified in international captive koala colonies, including; acetabulum dysplasia (Canfield and Spencer, 1993;Pye et al, 2008) and jaw dysplasia (Crompton et al, 2010;Lanyon and Sanson, 1986;Pettett et al, 2012). These findings suggest that there are likely inbreeding effects on the fitness of koalas.…”