Abstract

Greater cane rats (GCR) are increasingly becoming an important micro-livestock in Nigeria. However, domestication is progressing slowly due to a dearth of information about their biology. This study evaluated the sonographic anatomy and morphometry of major GCR abdominal organs. Intraperitoneal injection of Ketamine hydrochloride (7.5kg) and Xylazine hydrochloride (2mg/kg) was used to anaesthetize eight adult GCR, after which a portable ultrasound machine was used to examine their abdominal cavity. The Liver Short Axis (LSA) and Long Axis (LLA), Long Axis of Gall Bladder (LAGB) and Short Axis of (SAGB) of the gall bladder, Longitudinal Axis of the right and left kidneys (LARK; LALK), Transverse Axis of right and left kidneys (TARK; TALK), Stomach Diameter (SD), and Caecal Diameter (CD) were determined sonographically. Analysis of Covariance was used to compare the sonographic measurements between sexes. The result revealed that the adrenal gland, pancreas, ovaries, uterine horn, and urinary bladder were not visualizable, while the liver, kidneys, stomach, caecum, and intestine were visualized. The gall bladder and hepatic arteries appeared anechoic, and the liver was moderately echogenic. The liver's LLA varied from 34.69 mm to 86.05 mm, while its LSA varied from 28.34 mm to 47.50 mm. The mean LLA and LSA were not significantly different (P > 0.05) between sexes. Female GCR had a greater LARK (72.27 ± 4.74 mm) compared to males (68.57 ± 4.88 mm). On the other hand, males' TARK was longer (35.17 ± 3.0 mm) than females' (28.96 ± 5.4 mm). For both sexes, the stomach diameter varied from 11.63 to 20.85 mm. The caecum diameter between the male (6.63 ± 0.30mm) and female (6.01 ± 0.22 mm) was not significantly different (p > 0.05). In conclusion, transcutaneous abdominal ultrasound provides useful ultrasonographic details of abdominal structures for clinical disease diagnosis and management in GCR.

Key words: Abdominal, Cane rats, Transcutaneous, Ultrasound