Muhammad Tahir Riaz¹, Waqas Ahmad¹, Khalid Mehmood², Tauseefur Rehman², Ali Abbas², Muhammad Mutee us Salam¹, Jamila Shafi¹, Zahid Hussain^1*

¹Livestock and Dairy Development Department Punjab, Pakistan

²University College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Pakistan

Abstract

Gazella bennettii also known as Chinkara is an endangered species.  Two Chinkara were brought to the University Teaching Hospital of the University College of Veterinary & Animal Sciences, Bahawalpur. Clinical examination revealed lethargy, progressive weight loss, subnormal body temperature, sunken eyes, congested conjunctiva, rapid abdominal respiration, and anemia. The babesiosis was detected on the basis of intra erythrocytic protozoa in Giemsa stained blood smears. Furthermore, molecular identification was conducted by targeting V4 region of 18S rRNA gene. Grossly, lungs were the most severely affected organs observed in the study. The condition was successfully treated with imidocarb dipropionate (Imipro^®, 12%, Selmore Pharmaceutical, Pakistan) at dose rate of 3 mg/kg intramuscularly once a daily dose on days 1, 3, 6, 9, 15 and 21 along with supportive treatment. This study is the first one to report babesiosis in captive Chinkara deer.

Keywords: Babesiosis, Chinkara gazelle, Case report, Molecular detection