Journal of Animal Feed Science and Technology

This is an unusual case of a bicephalic monster fetus with congenital omphalocele identified in a goat during obstetric intervention. The fetus exhibited two heads sharing a single body and a pronounced abdominal defect through which abdominal viscera herniated. This report underscores the significance of documenting such rare congenital conditions to advance veterinary embryology and teratology.
 

A non descript 3 year-old female sheep bought to Teaching veterinary clinical complex with history of prolonged gestation and straining since last day without further progress. Upon vaginal examination, It was found that the foetus was in anterior presentation ,with extended forelimbs, and two palpable heads joined around the region of neck. The foetus was dead and confirmed to be a Bicephalic craniopagus monster. Simple traction of the foetus was tried but failed and per vaginal delivery was ruled out. It was decided to perform Caesarean section to relieve a dead dicephalus malformed foetus.
 

To guarantee food safety and safeguard the health of people, animals, and plants, sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) precautions are crucial. They concentrate on mitigating the risks associated with illnesses, pests, pollutants, and pathogens. SPS methods include phytosanitary measures like plant quarantine, pest risk analysis, and the creation of pestfree areas, as well as sanitary practices like Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), and food hygiene laws. Following the Uruguay Round of GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade) negotiations, the World Trade Organization (WTO) created the SPS Agreement in 1995. It offers a framework for standardizing international trade standards while preserving food safety and public health. Members of this agreement, including India, are required to adhere to SPS guidelines and take requests for agricultural imports into consideration. Harmonization, risk assessment, openness, and regional conditions are the main tenets of SPS measures. The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), the Office International des Epizooties (OIE), and the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) are essential in setting international standards for plant protection, animal health, and food quality. Safe commerce, economic growth, and biodiversity protection are all aided by the effective application of SPS policies.
 

Preslaughter handling emphasize the importance of proper animal handling techniques before slaughter, suggesting ways to improve handling practices to protect animal welfare, enhance carcass and meat quality, and ultimately maximize profits for meat processors. During marketing and transportation, cattle are exposed to various stressors that trigger specific behavioral and physiological responses, including increased heart rate, body temperature, and corticosteroid levels. These stress responses can lead to losses in carcass yield due to tissue mobilization and dehydration, resulting in losses ranging from 1% to 8% after a 48-hour fast.Improper handling can cause bruising, leading to trimmed tissue, reduced yield, and downgrading. Moreover, pre-slaughter handling can significantly impact lean meat quality by affecting muscle glycogen stores. Chronic stress can deplete glycogen stores, resulting in reduced postmortem acidification and the production of dark cutting beef (DCB), which is prone to spoilage.Therefore, it is crucial to adopt proper animal handling techniques to minimize stress, prevent bruising, and maintain optimal carcass and meat quality.
 

The present study was conducted to investigate the hematological changes in Haemonchus contortus affected lambs. A total of 350 Nellore brown sheep flock maintained in an extensive system of grazing, and out of which 40 lambs were selected randomly. Even though the sheep were dewormed regularly, an outbreak was noticed. Two lamb were found dead in the flock prior to screening. During screening out of 40 lambs, 18 lambs were found normal and were kept as control group and 22 lambs which exhibited clinical signs of anemia, poor growth, emaciation, diarrhea were selected. Blood samples were analyzed for the estimation of Total erythrocyte (RBC), total leukocyte (WBC) count, hemoglobin concentration (g/dl), Packed cell volume (%), MCV (fl), MCH (pg), MCHC (g/dl) and compared with normal animals. The infection was confirmed to be due to H. contortus following the recovery of Haemonchus worms at post-mortem. Haematological profile revealed that there was a significant (P < 0.05) decrease in total erythrocyte count, total leukocyte count, hemoglobin concentration, packed cell volume and MCHC values in H. contortus affected lambs.