Ruminal tympany, also known as bloat, is a disease of ruminant animals, characterized by an excessive volume of gas in the rumen. Ruminal tympany may be primary, known as frothy bloat, or secondary, known as free-gas bloat. In the rumen, food eaten by the ruminant is fermented by microbes. This fermentation process continually produces gas, the majority of which is expelled from the rumen by eructation (burping).
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Ruminal tympany occurs when this gas becomes trapped in the rumen. In frothy bloat (primary ruminal tympany), the gas produced by fermentation is trapped within the fermenting material in the rumen, causing a build up of foam which cannot be released by burping. In cattle, the disease may be triggered after an animal eats a large amount of easily fermenting plants, such as legumes, alfalfa, red clover, or white clover. Some legumes, such as sainfoin, birdsfoot trefoil and cicer milkvetch are not associated with causing bloat in cattle.
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In feedlot cattle, a diet containing a high proportion of cereal grain can lead to primary ruminal tympany. The main signs of bloat in cattle are distension of the left side of the abdomen, dyspnea (difficulty breathing) and severe distress. If gas continues to accumulate, the right side of the abdomen may also become distended, with death occurring in cattle within 3–4 hours after symptoms begin. In free-gas bloat (secondary ruminal tympany), gas builds up in the rumen and cannot escape, due to blockage of the esophagus.
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Erle E. Bartley (October 23, 1922 – February 10, 1983) was an Agricultural Science Professor at Kansas State University from 1949 until his death in 1983. He was known for his many agricultural inventions, especially those regarding ruminal tympany (ruminant bloat) problems. He invented the bloat preventative poloxalene, also known as "Bloat Guard".
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A cannula is used in an emergency procedure to relieve pressure and bloating in cattle and sheep with ruminal tympany, due most commonly to their accidentally grazing wilted legume or legume-dominant pastures, particularly alfalfa, ladino, and red and white clover.Diseases of the Ruminant Forestomach : Bloat, Merck Veterinary Manual Cannulas are a component used in the insertion of the Verichip. Much larger cannulas are used to research about the digestive system of cows.
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In May 2015, uncommonly large numbers of saigas began to die from a mysterious epizootic illness suspected to be pasteurellosis. Herd fatality is 100% once infected, with an estimated 40% of the species' total population already dead. More than 120,000 carcasses had been found by late May 2015, while the estimated total population was only 250,000. Biologist Murat Nurushev suggested that the cause might be acute ruminal tympany, whose symptoms (bloating, mouth foaming, and diarrhea) had been observed in dead saiga antelopes.
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Trocars are widely used by veterinarians not only for draining hydrothorax, ascites, or for introducing instruments in laparoscopic surgery, but for acute animal-specific conditions as well. In cases of ruminal tympany in cattle, a wide-bore trocar may be passed through the skin into the rumen to release trapped gas. In dogs, a similar procedure is often performed for patients presenting with GDV (gastric dilatation-volvulus) in which a wide-bore trocar is passed through the skin into the stomach to immediately decompress the stomach. Depending on the severity of clinical signs on presentation, this is often performed after pain management has been administered but prior to general anaesthesia.
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