Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Endoscopy and surgery for exotic pets like rabbits and ferrets
By Divers, Stephen J·Published in The veterinary clinics of North America. Exotic animal practice·2010·Department of Small Animal Medicine & Surgery (Zoological Medicine), United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Exotic mammal diagnostic endoscopy and endosurgery.
Plain-English summary
Endoscopy, a procedure that allows veterinarians to look inside an animal's body, has been used for a long time in birds and pets like dogs and cats, but it's only recently been applied to exotic mammals such as rabbits, rodents, and ferrets. Initially, it was mainly used to check the mouth, but now it's also helpful for examining the nose, urinary system, and even for performing surgeries through small incisions. This article discusses common endoscopic procedures that veterinarians use for both routine and more complex cases in exotic animals, and it highlights new techniques that are likely to become standard practice in the future.
Abstract
Despite the extensive use of endoscopy in avian and domestic animal practice, inclusion of exotic mammals (rabbits, rodents, ferrets, and so forth) in the endoscopist's case load is a much more recent phenomenon. Initially used as a means for the detailed evaluation of the oral cavity, rigid endoscopy has also become invaluable for the evaluation of the nasal cavity, urogenital tract, and increasingly for laparoscopic procedures. This article summarizes the most common procedures used by the author for first opinion and referral cases, and introduces some of the recent developments that are expected to become the standard of care in exotic animal practice in the future.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20381776/