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Hospital delivers lifesaving treatment to baby hippo
Vets at Cincinnati Zoo reached out to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital after baby Fiona became hydrated.

Premature Fiona is starting to show signs of recovery

A hippo that was born six-weeks premature has received life-saving treatment from doctors at a nearby children’s hospital.

Vets at Cincinnati Zoo reached out to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital after baby Fiona became dehydrated and in need of IV fluids. Like a good neighbour, the Vascular Access Team (VAT) rushed over to help and inserted an IV catheter.

“Preemies have very tiny and unstable veins, and even though our vet team was able to get multiple IVs placed, the veins could not sustain the IV and would blow,” said curator of mammals Christina Grouch.

“Lucky for us, we’re right next door to a world-class facility with a whole department dedicated to working with difficult veins.”

Two VAT members arrived at the zoo equipped with sensitive ultrasound equipment and placed the catheter in Fiona. The first IV took around 30 minutes and then the vein blew.

Not giving up, the team gave it another try and placed an IV catheter in one of Fiona’s deep leg veins. Since the doctors inserted the IV, zoo vets have been working around the clock to monitor the baby hippo.

“Five bags of fluid later, Fiona is showing signs of recovery,” said Grouch. “She is still sleeping a lot but has started taking bottles again and has periods of carefully-supervised activity. The catheter is still in place.”

This is not the first time an animal at Cincinnati Zoo has been cared for by doctors at the children’s hospital. in 2015, an aardvark was transported to Cincinnati Children’s for CT and MRI scans to get a closer look at what might be causing persistent ocular drainage.

The centres have also consulted on baby gorillas and polar bear pregnancy tests. But say that a premature hippo is a first for everyone.

“We are happy to extend our expertise to our neighbours at the Cincinnati Zoo. Like many people, we are rooting for Fiona!” said VAT clinical director, Sylvia Rineair.

Image (C) Cincinnati Zoo

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Reporting service for dead wild birds updated

News Story 1
 The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has updated its online reporting service for dead wild birds.

The new version allows those reporting a dead bird to drop a pin on a map when reporting the location. It also includes a wider range of wild bird species groups to select from when describing the bird.

The online service, which helps APHA to monitor the spread of diseases such as avian influenza, can be accessed here. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
NI chief vet urges bluetongue vigilance

Northern Ireland's chief veterinary officer (CVO) has urged farmers to be vigilant for signs of bluetongue, after the Animal and Plant Health Agency warned there was a very high probability of further cases in Great Britain.

There have been 126 confirmed cases of bluetongue virus serotype 3 in England since November 2023, with no cases reported in Northern Ireland. The movement of live ruminants from Great Britain to Northern Ireland is currently suspended.

According to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), the virus is most likely to enter Northern Ireland through infected animals or germplasm (semen or ova) being imported.

Brian Dooher, Northern Ireland's CVO, said: "Surveillance for this disease within Northern Ireland has been increased to assist with detection at the earliest opportunity which will facilitate more effective control measures."

Farmers should report any suspicions of the disease to their private veterinary practitioner, the DAERA Helpline on 0300 200 7840 or their local DAERA Direct Veterinary Office.