The book with a title of ìWildlife Medicine and Health Managementî has been prepared primarily with an idea of satisfying the criteria of the wildlife related syllabus for the veterinary students undertaking their degree programme in various veterinary institutions of this country. However, this book has additional information with regard to the catering of wildlife veterinarians serving in various zoos or wildlife regions of this country as well as in other countries.

It is crystal clear that India is one of the 12 mega biodiversity countries in the world. The country has been divided into 10 biogeographic regions. In our country, the diverse physical features and climatic situations have formed ecological habitats like forests, grasslands, wetlands, coastal and marine ecosystems and desert ecosystems, which harbor and sustain immense biodiversity. 

Except lions, the tigers like other felids are highly solitary and however, during the breeding period, the males will approach the female for mating activity. Tigers are highly territorial in nature. Like other felids, retractile claws are present in felid which is an anatomically peculiar feature. They are crepuscular in nature and however, they are quite active in the morning hours.

Glutaraldehyde shall be chosen for the disinfections processes after the disposal of the carcass, subsequent to the post- mortem (however, it is carcinogenic in nature).

BNHS is one of the oldest scientific organizations in India, working for nature conservation since 1883. Our primary goal is to spread awareness about nature through science-based research, conservation advocacy, education, scientific publications, nature tours, and other programs. 

It pays emphasis on the conservation of ecosystem and support to the management of the country in protected area-network. To prevent wildlife depletion, several Acts have been made from time to time, by the State as well as the Central Government.

Elephants are the simple stomached animals and colon is associated with digestion, predominantly. Elephants are the herd animals (gregarious in nature) and belong to the matriarchal groups (Leader of herd is usually a cow elephant)

Wildlife diseases have gained some good momentum in the recent years due to the complex-linkage with zoonosis, conflicts between wild fauna and homo sapiens in an ascending manner, environmental health care measures etc. Due to this, considerable pressure is there on zoo veterinarians or the field veterinarians working in free ranging areas of forests like national parks, wildlife sanctuaries etc.

Wild life diseases are given more priority in the recent days due to the fact that conservation of any wild fauna canít be achieved fully, unless due efforts are equally given pertaining to the assessment of health status and the disease management, in the concerned wild animal species.

Viral diseases causing problems to the routine performance of the wild animals are caused substantially by many viral agents also

Natural areas in tropical and sub tropical climates are more likely to enhance development of parasitic loads because of the fact that there are variations in climates of these areas in addition to the variations in the type of vegetations and species of wild fauna.

ìMetabolic Diseasesî mean the diseases that occur due to the ìimbalance between the rate of input of dietary nutrients and the ìoutput of productsî (product like new born, milk for young one etc.) and lead to the occurrence of metabolic derangements in the affected wild animal species.

Colic is a general term that implies abdominal pain and is one of the major causes of death in animals including elephants, camelids etc.

Felid medicine needs to be well understood by the veterinarians in zoos or in any other captive wild animal places. Severe toxic reactions occur by usage of paracetamol in felids. Methaemoglobinaemia is the toxic sign noticed in felids. Hence, the zoo veterinarian can use either meloxicam or ketoprofen, in general. Tetracyclines are the drugs of choice for Ehrlichia canis and Rickettsia rickettsii in feline as well as in canine medicine.

All lagomorphs (meaning ìhare-shapedî) are small to medium-sized terrestrial herbivores. They superficially resemble rodents and in older classifications were even included in the order Rodentia, as both possess a set of continuously growing incisor teeth. It is now recognized that these two orders have long separate evolutionary histories.

Due to the paucity of clinical data, therapeutic management measures available with domestic animal-practice needs to be extrapolated for due usage in case of captive wild animals reared in zoos, zoological parks and zoological gardens.

Rescue of any wild animal during the occurrence of natural disaster regardless of the habitat / topography is totally difference when compared with any domestic animal species. The person engaging in the rescue activities of wild fauna in regions exposed to natural disasters or calamities need to understand about the general classification of wild fauna as a first step.

Use of modern reproductive biotechnologies or assisted reproductive techniques (ART) include in general artificial insemination, embryo transfer/sexing, in vitro fertilization, gamete/embryo micromanipulation, semen sexing, genome resource banking, and somatic cell nuclear transfer (cloning) in conservation programs for endangered mammalian species. The biotechnologies of these kinds generally permit more and more offspring to be obtained from selected parents to ensure genetic diversity and may reduce the interval between generations.

The metabolic rate of reptiles is lower than for mammals and birds, and consequently the k constant in determining energy expenditure, nutritional requirements and even calculating allometric drug doses are related to the equation: Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) = K(Wkg0.75) = Kcal/day, where K is the energy constant = 10 in reptiles and Wkg is the animalís weight in kilograms.

Birds are extremely vulnerable to handling (even injection related events) stress and hence, chemically immobilize for a detailed clinical examination or intensive sampling procedures).

Management of zoo and exotic animals in zoos are carried out in different ways. In the management of zoo, various cadres of personnel get employed and often, a team-approach is highly required and however, veterinarian is one of the important cadres in the zoo related personnel and veterinary interventions are highly required for management of feeding, housing, breeding and health of various species of wild fauna belonging to multiple taxonomical groups.

The aim of any good zoo should be to recreate the habitat from which the animal came as accurately as possible, with enough space to move around and enough stimulation so that they can behave naturally. Monkey cages should have plenty of branches for them to swing from and bird cages should have enough room so that they can fly. Some zoos hide the lionís or tigerís food so that they have to use their senses to explore and find it.

Captive breeding programme is generally considered as a process of breeding animals in controlled environments within well-defined settings, such as wildlife reserves, zoos and other commercial/noncommercialconservation facilities.Use of modern reproductive biotechnologies or assisted reproductive techniques (ART) include in general artificial insemination, embryo transfer/sexing, in vitro fertilization, gamete/embryo micromanipulation, semen sexing, genome resource banking, and somatic cell nuclear transfer (cloning) in conservation programs for endangered mammalian species.

Veterinarians, biologists, field assistants, hunters, and other individuals who work directly with wildlife have an increased risk of acquiring these diseases directly from animal hosts or their ectoparasites. Plague, tularemia, and leptospirosis have been acquired in the handling and skinning of rodents, rabbits, and carnivores.

In the wildlife conservation and management, restraint and handling of wild/zoo and exotic animals play a prominent role. Zoo veterinarian has to deal with animal handling on a regular basis for various purposes like routine health checkup, research purpose (assisted reproductive techniques, blood collection for genetic health analysis, radio-collaring), or for conservation and management purposes (capture of problematic animals, translocation. introduction and reintroduction) and for the marking of animals. So, proper management called for good restraint in wildlife.

Chemical restraint is a form of animal restraint technique in which a drug or a chemical is used to restrict the movement (walking, running, aggression) of an animal or sometimes just to sedate or to calm down the animal. Chemical restraint is a safe and effective capture method when applied correctly and with due precaution.

Chemical immobilization of elephants needs an understanding of itís special features as a priority. Lungs are adhered to the chest wall by fibrous tissue and there is no pleural space. This fact must be taken into consideration when the elephant is cast or put into positions that may inhibit respiration.The trunk of the elephant is a vital organ. An injured or paralyzed trunk is a serious problem; if it cannot be corrected, the elephant will starve.

Once the animal is darted, immobilized animal should be under the expert care of an experienced wildlife veterinarian. The veterinarian needs to monitor the complete immobilization process and should know what to do if something goes wrong. Keep the darted animal in sight and allow the drug to act completely which may generally take 5- 25 minutes depending on the species, sex, drug used, and body condition of animal. Any noise or excitement may cause immobilized animal to wake up or take flight which may make animal search difficult.

Visiting the zoo should be understood in terms of conservation by all and it is to be remembered that the zoo is a captive wild animal place wherein the public and particularly the children have ample opportunities to see the various species of wild fauna which includes not only the native species of wild mammals, reptiles, aves, amphibians, butterflies etc. but the exotic speciess of wild animals also in general.

Wildlife Sanctuary is a natural habitat, owned by the government or private agency, that safeguards particular species of birds and animals to make sure that viable population of the wildlife and their habitats are maintained.

The ability to inject a drug into a free ranging animal using a remote injection system is a main stay of zoo and wild life medicine and the accepted and routine procedures of today for anesthetizing free ranging, dangerous, or hyper excitable animals are to be well understood for the proper preventive medical procedures, medical treatment, surgery, or scientific study. However, all these were earlier existing only as a dream, until remote injection-based gadgets like darts, blow pipes and distant drug-delivery gadgets like pistol and rifle were duly developed, in conjunction with safer injectable anesthetics.

Amounts up to 5 ml of blood can be safely drawn from the auricular marginal vein, using a 23- to 25-gauge needle (or) a 23-gauge butterfly attached to a syringe or tube. The jugular vein should be avoided for blood collection if the rabbit suffers from a respiratory problem or shows respiratory distress. It may become cyanotic during the procedure. Alternate sites for blood collection are the cephalic and the lateral saphenous veins. (Their locations are the same as in dogs and cats. These veins are fragile, and a hematoma is easily formed).

A veterolegal post mortem examination should be done by written order from the Police or the District Magistrate. Before examination carefully read the police report.

Clinical examination of animals regardless of domestic or wild ones is of utmost significance during the assessment of health status in animals. Prior to collecting samples, it is important to determine the capabilities and submission criteria of the laboratory receiving the samples.

Hard tongue due to fibrous tissue proliferation (termed as wooden tongue) is a characteristic feature. Swab and smear from abscess and tissue samples including tongue and lymphnodes.