Home / Environment / Vet's Wildest Patients: From Cloudrats to Lions
Vet's Wildest Patients: From Cloudrats to Lions
16 Apr
Summary
- A vet uses a £500,000 scanner for free on endangered zoo animals.
- Scanning has aided conservation efforts and knowledge sharing globally.
- Exotic patients include leopards, lions, baboons, and a cloudrat.
Mark Straw, a veterinary surgeon in Doncaster, utilizes his advanced, human-grade £500,000 CT scanner to assist conservation efforts for endangered animals worldwide. His practice, Beechwood Veterinary Hospital, offers these scanning services free of charge to zoological centers, including Yorkshire Wildlife Park and the International Zoo Veterinary Group (IZVG).
Straw's unique client list includes leopards, baboons, lions, polar bears, penguins, and cloudrats. He has successfully diagnosed conditions such as an infected uterus in a cloudrat, requiring a hysterectomy, and identified extensive fractures and arthritis in a giraffe's foot post-mortem.
The data gathered from these scans is invaluable, contributing to a global knowledge base that aids other zoos in managing their animal populations and understanding common health issues like foot disease in giraffes.
Beyond diagnostics, the service supports conservation by ensuring the welfare of these animals. Straw expresses a deep sense of privilege in working with such incredible creatures, a far cry from his initial aspirations of treating only domestic pets.
