In early June, you evaluate a female lamb that is 6 months old in Arkansas. The lamb presents with extreme lethargy and also is having difficulty breathing, even at rest. The owners explain to you that two months ago, they bought this lamb and another as pets for their children. They bought the lambs at a 4-H sale. Since acquiring the lambs, the owners have fed them a small amount of commercial lamb feed daily and have also allowed them access to a rather large area of new pasture. The pasture was grazed on in years past by cattle. The owners have also noticed that both lambs are usually playful, but both become very progressively lethargic immediately, especially during the last month. The owners have not given any vaccinations, deworming, or other treatments.
Clinical Examination
After getting the history, you examine the lamb for further clinical signs. These are a few findings:
- Lamb is thin
- Reluctance to stand
- There is fluid swellings felt under the jaw and where the legs meet the body (indicating possible edema)
- Slightly elevated temperature
- Moderately increased pulse and respiratory rates
- Very pale mucous membranes
- You press on the mucous membranes to see how fast the blood capillaries refill, the refill time is reduced
- You here muffled respiratory signs (also indicated possible edema, specifically pulmonary edema)
Further Diagnostics
You perform a few further diagnostics to help you access the cause of the clinical signs:
- Blood work reveals that the packed cell volume or hematocrit is only 12%. Plasma protein concentration is 4.5 g/dL
- Fecal sample is collected and several parasites are detected