Abstract
Some observations made during routine clinical and pathological examination of laboratory mice, guinea-pigs, rats, rabbits, cats and pigs are discussed.
Increased susceptibility to disease was noted following a variety of immunosuppressive and experimental procedures. Thymectomy and/or irradiation precipitated deaths in mice from Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriaemia. Deaths from Tyzzer's disease followed irradiation or injection of mice with lymphocytes. Large clusters of spore-like organisms were seen in the livers of 2 irradiated mice with Tyzzers disease.
A rapid clinical response followed treatment with an anti-protozoal drug in young pigs from which a spirochaete and a ciliate Balantidium coli were demonstrated in profuse mucoid diarrhoeic faeces.