RETROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS OF MORTALITY IN CAPTIVE BONGO (), 1995-2015.

Abstract

A retrospective histologic study was performed for 96 deceased bongo () submitted to Northwest ZooPath from 1995 to 2015. Histologic data were assessed for associations with sex, age, cause of death/euthanasia, and affected organ systems. Female bongo lived significantly longer than males. Males were more likely to die from infectious causes (41.2%), whereas most females died from chronic noninfectious conditions (54.4%) and trauma/stress (28.1%). Of those that died from infectious disease, the respiratory tract was the most commonly affected organ system. The most common infectious agents included acid-fast bacteria and fungi. Chronic conditions included amyloidosis (31.0%), inanition/emaciation (23.8%), and neoplasia (21.4%). Of the 31 animals that died with amyloidosis, 58% appeared to be clinically affected, and amyloidosis was likely an underlying cause of death in 42% of the animals. The most commonly affected organs included the liver, kidneys, adrenal glands, and gastrotintestinal tract. Also noteworthy was a high prevalence of adrenal gland hyperplasia and neoplasia, cystic thyroid glands, and aspiration pneumonia, which were not consistently associated with a prior anesthetic event or other obvious predisposing cause.