Abstract

A ten-day-old, captive-bred Indo-Pacific dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) was thriving at Ocean Park, Hong Kong until there was an acute onset of regurgitation and reduced nursing activity. Loss of body condition was noted about twelve hours later, and the veterinary and curatorial staff began dropping the pool to intervene with supportive care and to obtain diagnostics. The calf spontaneously expired during the pool drop. The remains were recovered and an immediate necropsy included findings of patent ductus arteriosus, patent urachus, and bilateral focal pulmonary atelectasis. Incidentally, this calf was observed to have a head-first presentation, and a rapid parturition that was less than thirty minutes. The veterinary staff hypothesizes that the birth defects may have resulted from rapid parturition resulting in a syndrome of failure to transition from fetal physiology to neonatal physiology.

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Hui Suk Wai, Chan San Yuen, Mickie Cheung, Trevor Kan, and Michael KM Lam of the Ocean Park Clinical Laboratory for their technical assistance. Additionally, they would like to thank Dr. Gregory Bossart, VMD, PhD, Chief Veterinary Officer and Senior Vice President of Veterinary Services at Georgia Aquarium for his expertise in completing the histology for this case. Finally, the authors would like to express their deep appreciation for the curatorial staff and trainers of the Ocean Park Marine Mammal Department, including Gary Wong, Harriet Chiu, Phillip Wong, and Ringo Chung for their assistance, records, historical perspective, and support during this case.

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