2024 BSVP Autumn Meeting – Exotic and Zoo Animal Pathology

On the weekend of 5th and 6th of October, we had the BSVP autumn meeting which this year focused on Exotic/Zoo Animal Pathology. The event took place at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh and was attended by 58 delegates, including 17 trainees/residents.

The meeting was opened by Daniela Denk (Dr med vet, MRCVS, DiplECVP, RCVS Recognised Specialist in Veterinary Pathology (Zoo and Wildlife) – Sea World, Abu Dhabi) with a general discussion on the philosophy and general principles involving pathological diagnosis in exotic species, with an emphasis on the importance of a comparative approach. This was followed by talks on bacterial and viral diseases in zoo and exotic species.

In the afternoon, Mark Stidworthy (BA VetMB FRCPath PhD FRCVS RCVS Recognised Specialist in Veterinary Pathology (Zoo and Wildlife) – IZVG) presented a talk on comparative neoplasia in zoo animals, with an interesting discussion of the pathogenesis of cancer across all species, as well as a discussion of known causes of common cancers in a variety of species. His following talk emphasised the importance of the one-health mindset when approaching cases involving exotic animals.

The first day was concluded with a talk by Simon Spiro (MA VetMB MVetMed DPhil FRCPath DipACVP MRCVS – Zoological Society of London) who presented a hands-on approach to cetacean pathology, with a special focus on practical concerns.

On Sunday morning, we had Daniela Denk presenting parasitic and environmental diseases, followed by Mark sharing his experience with a variety of microsporidial and fungal infections affecting captive wildlife.

In the afternoon, Alexandra Penrose (BVSc MSc MVetMed Diplomate ACVP MRCVS – VPG) presented a series of cytology cases from a variety of exotic animal species, which provided an insight of the clinical pathologist’s perspective. This talk generated an interesting discussion with the audience, and highlighted the importance of an open communication between clinicians, clinical pathologists and anatomic pathologists. This was followed by Mark with a discussion on captive avian pathology.

The event was finalised with an interactive quiz session hosted by Simon Spiro and Daniela Denk, in which the audience had the opportunity to test their skills in 15 board-style MCQs. It was a great opportunity for residents/trainees to get a sense of what is expected of them when sitting the board exam. It emphasised the importance of understanding the pathogenesis and the species context of a variety of diseases in addition to gross and histological morphological features.

We would like to thank the scientific organisers Linda Morrison and Erika Abondatti for making this event possible!


Caption: From left to right: Linda Morisson, Erika Abondatti (Scientific Organisers), Alexandra Penrose, Simon Spiro, Mark Stidworthy and Daniela Denk

Trainee bursaries

The BSVP is pleased to have offered bursaries to 5 trainees who presented their cases/studies in the form of scientific posters. These included exciting cases involving a variety of species, which generated a lot of interest and discussion!

Alberto Rodriguez Barbon (Chester Zoo/University of Liverpool) presented a comprehensive characterisation of post-mortem lesions in a series of 20 captive Malaysian fire snails (Platymma tweediei), in which pneumonia was the most consistent finding.

Bert De Jonge (RVC) presented a case series of Okapis with a Fanconi-like syndrome associated with chronic tubulo-interstitial nephritis.

Catherine Ennett (University of Nottingham) presented a case of a renal neoplasm in a male hognose snake (Heterodon nascius) with histological and immunohistochemical characterisation, highlighting the challenges of diagnosis of neoplasia in species in which IHC is not widely used.

Nicola Sankey (RVC) presented two cases of pyometra in large exotic cats, a jungle cat (Felis chaus) and an Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis).

Yannick Van de Weyer (University of Liverpool) presented a series of cases of osteomyelitis and myositis associated with Yersinia pseudotuberculosis in village weavers (Ploceus cucullatus) and an oriental magpie robin (Copsychus saularis) in the absence of intestinal lesions.

These abstracts are available for download in the following link:


  BSVP 2024 Trainee Bursary Papers (3.9 MiB, 11 hits)

A special thank you to Annabella Pocknell, Cheryl Sangster, Joyce Bass, Sionagh Smith and Taiana Costa for judging the papers submitted for the trainee bursaries!

The BSVP is always supporting students and continued education, so please stay tuned for future opportunities.

A special thank you to our sponsor!

This year’s meeting was kindly sponsored by Idexx.