Lecture 29

Question 1

What are the characteristics of puberty in the normal queen?

Answer 1

-occurs around 2.5 kg body weight (80% mature BW)
-around 6 to 9 months
-breed specific and heritable variability
-affected by season/photoperiod

Question 2

What are the characteristics of estrous in the normal queen?

Answer 2

-seasonally polyestrous
-long day breeders
-melatonin has similar effects to those in mares
-animals kept indoors with excess light will be non-seasonal
-induced ovulators
-will have 2 to 3 week inter-estrus intervals when not pregnant or pseudo-pregnant

Question 3

What are the characteristics of normal queen ovaries?

Answer 3

-covered by peritoneum forming a bursa
-can be visualized within the bursa

Question 4

What are the characteristics of the normal queen vagina/vestibule?

Answer 4

-vagina not able to distend
-small diameter near cervix
-vaginal or rectal digital exam NOT recommended
-vestibule narrows to ~ 4mm in diameter
-semen deposited in posterior vagina
-vestibulovaginal junction is narrow and inelastic

Question 5

What are the charactersitics of the normal queen vulva?

Answer 5

-much different than the bitch
-no edema
-no serosanguineous discharge
-unresponsive to estrogens

Question 6

What are the characteristics of estrogen in the queen?

Answer 6

changes in conc. with ovarian follicular size

Question 7

What are the characteristics of LH and FSH in the queen?

Answer 7

-increased FSH with follicular growth
-increased LH within minutes of vaginal stimulation

Question 8

What are the characteristics of progesterone in the queen?

Answer 8

*increases 24 to 48 hours post-ovulation

*pseudopregnancy:
-decreases ~ 25 days post-ov.
-CL lyses 25-30 days post-ov.
-return to baseline P4 conc. 30-40 days post-ov.

*pregnancy:
-initial decrease in P4 conc. by 25-35 days post-ov.
-CL is the main source of P4
-placenta provides little to no P4
-luteotrophic factors may be involved

Question 9

What are the characteristics of prolactin in the queen?

Answer 9

-increases 30-35 days post-ov.
-max prolactin conc. reached a few days before parturition
-luteotrophic role similar to in the bitch
-conc. does not change in pseudopregnancy

Question 10

What are the characteristics of relaxin in the queen?

Answer 10

-pregnancy-specific
-conc. increases around 25 days post-ov.

Question 11

What are the characteristics of melatonin in the queen?

Answer 11

-associated with photoperiod
-melatonin and prolactin are synchronous
-exact mechanisms not understood

Question 12

What are the characteristics of proestrus in the queen?

Answer 12

-duration of 1 to 2 days
-affection behavior may be the only sign
-can be aggressive if mating is attempted

Question 13

What are the vaginal cytology findings during proestrus in the queen?

Answer 13

-clearing of the background on smear
-erythrocytes and leukocytes not often seen

Question 14

What are the characteristics of estrus in the queen?

Answer 14

-follicular phase lasts around 7 days
-post-ov. breeding behavior subsides within 1 to 2 days
-begins with mating and ends with refusal

Question 15

What are the vaginal smear findings during estrus in the queen?

Answer 15

-around 10% squamous cells at the start
-50% cornified cells by day 7
-less likely for cells to clump
-rarely anuclear
-90% clear background
-parabasal cells disappear
-intermediate cells decreased

Question 16

What are the characteristics of interestrus in the queen?

Answer 16

-phase between waves of breeding activity
-lasts around 14 days
-follows estrus if ovulation does not occur
-duration is not affected by coital contact that fails to cause pregnancy
-return to normal behavior

Question 17

What are the vaginal cytology findings during interestrus in the queen?

Answer 17

-background debris
-nucleated superficial and intermediate cells dominate

Question 18

What are the characteristics of diestrus in the queen?

Answer 18

-P4 conc. are initially > 1-2 ng/mL; about 48 hours after LH surge
-P4 conc. will increase to > 20 ng/mL around day 14 to 18
-CL remains functional through day 35 to 37
-pregnancy will last until diestrus day 63-66
-pseudo-preg. will last until diestrus day 40-50

Question 19

What are the characteristics of anestrus in the queen?

Answer 19

-absence of cycling activity
-seen during late fall to early winter
-often October through December in North America

Question 20

What are the vaginal cytology findings during anestrus?

Answer 20

-some parabasal and nucleated superficial cells
-intermediate cells make up 85% of the cells

Question 21

What are the characteristics of mating-induced ovulation?

Answer 21

-reflex-mediated induced ovulation
-GnRH and LH surge
-max. LH conc. occurs around 4h later; following around 8 copulations
-ovulation occurs 24-48 hours after the LH surge
-ovulation does not always occur

Question 22

What are the possible outcomes of estrus in the bred queen?

Answer 22

-anovulatory cycle
-pseudo-pregnancy
-ovulation and fertilization

Question 23

What are the characteristics of spontaneous ovulation in queens?

Answer 23

-occurs in 30+% of queens
-can occur with stroking lower back or tail head
-can occur in the presence of a male
-can occur with artificial stimulation of vagina and/or cervix

Question 24

Which hormones can be used to induce ovulation?

Answer 24

-GnRH on day 1 or 2 of estrus
-hCG on day 1 or 2 of estrus

Question 25

How can estrus be prevented in queens?

Answer 25

*surgical: -OVH between estrus cycles/during diestrus *chemical: -progesterone -can lead to mammary hyperplasia *prevention of implantation: -ZP and GnRH vaccines

Question 26

What are the characteristics of pregnancy in the queen?

Answer 26

*gestation length: -63 to 65 days after ovulation -62 to 72 days total *implantation and fetal development: -in the oviducts around 3 to 4 d -in the uterus around 4 to 5 d -attachment around 15 d

Question 27

How is pregnancy diagnosed in queens?

Answer 27

-plasma P4 greater than 2.5 ng/mL -relaxin measurement after 28 days in serum or urine -abdominal palpation after 21 to 35 days -ultrasound after 16 days; heartbeats detectable at 25 days -radiographs after 38 to 40 days; 45 days recommended

Question 28

What are the characteristics of pregnancy termination in the queen?

Answer 28

*main source of P4 is the CL *drugs that lyse the CL are not as effective in the queen as the bitch *ultrasound to confirm pregnancy before attempting termination *drugs for mid-gestation termination include: -PGF2a -dopamine agonist -P4 receptor blocker

Question 29

What are the general causes of pregnancy loss in the queen?

Answer 29

*fetal defects -fetal chromosomal error *endocrine disorders -hypoluteoidism *nutritional deficiency -taurine-deficient diets

Question 30

What are the infectious causes of pregnancy loss?

Answer 30

-panleukopenia -leukemia oncovirus -viral rhinotracheitis -FIP -FIV -toxoplasma -psittacosis/Chlamydia -miscellaneous bacterial infections

Question 31

What are possible periparturient problems affecting queens?

Answer 31

-hysterical mothers/helicopter owner -post-partum hemorrhage -retained placenta -uterine prolapse -acute metritis -uterine torsion -uterine rupture

Question 32

What are the characteristics of cystic endometrial hyperplasia and pyometra in queens?

Answer 32

-similar to dogs -less common in queens than bitches due to induced-ovulator status

Question 33

What should be assessed in infertile queens?

Answer 33

-vaccination protocols -systemic diseases -medications received; esp. hormones -date of estrus onset -number of times bred -proven fertility in the past -physical exam -pregnancy diagnostics

Question 34

What are the characteristics of puberty in the normal tom cat?

Answer 34

-occurs around 8 to 12 months -sperm production is seasonally dependent

Question 35

What are the charactersitics of tom cat anatomy?

Answer 35

-penis has two corpora cavernosa -base of penis has 6 to 8 circular rows of spines; 150-200 total -spines are androgen-dependent; go away with neuter -has prostate and bulbourethral glands

Question 36

Which colors of tom cats may have altered fertility?

Answer 36

tortoiseshell and calico males

Question 37

Which conditions could cause infertility in the tom cat?

Answer 37

*gonadal sex abnormality -true hermaphrodite *phenotypic -pseudohermaphrodite *cryptorchid *orchiditis/injury/atrophy *neoplasia *housing/light exposure

Question 38

What are the characteristics of semen collection and evaluation in the tom cat?

Answer 38

-can collect via electroejaculation, artificial vagina, or post-copulation vaginal washes -want to evaluate a series of ejaculations; 3 times over 3 to 4 week interval -evaluate progressive motility, morphology, and concentration

Question 39

What are the normal characteristics of the semen in the tom cat?

Answer 39

-milky to opalescent color -0.1 to 0.7 mL in volume -70%+ motility -3.5 - 60 x10^6 conc. -44 to 70% normal sperm