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Abdominal mass in a New Zealand white rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)

Lab Animal volume 42, pages 19–22 (2013)Cite this article

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We obtained a 6-month-old male New Zealand White rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), free of Pasteurella multocida, Clostridium piliforme, oxyuriasis, dermatophytosis and ectoparasites, from a commercial vendor (Myrtle's Rabbitry, Inc., Thompson Station, TN). When the rabbit arrived at our facility, we carried out fecal examination for coccidia, cryptosporidia, protozoa and helminthes; all results were negative. We housed the rabbit in a 4.2-ft2 stainless steel cage with slatted flooring. The rabbit had ad libitum access to water via an automated watering device and was fed a diet of Prolab High Fiber rabbit chow (5P25, Purina Laboratory, St. Louis, MO), supplemented daily with fruits and vegetables. We provided plastic balls, dumbbells and chewing chains for environmental enrichment. We maintained the room on a 12-h:12-h light:dark cycle. The animal care and use program at East Carolina University is registered with the US Department of Agriculture, maintains an Assurance with the Public Health Service and is fully accredited by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International. This rabbit was assigned to an IACUC-approved protocol and was maintained in accordance with the Animal Welfare Act1 regulations and the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals2.

After being housed in the facility for approximately 6 weeks, the rabbit was scheduled to undergo an IACUC-approved surgical procedure for the placement of an aortic stent. We anesthetized the rabbit with an injection of ketamine and xylazine (35 mg per kg body weight and 5 mg per kg body weight, respectively) into the lumbar muscles. Before beginning surgery, we carried out a basic physical exam and palpated a large, firm, round intra-abdominal mass on the rabbit's ventral midline. The mass was not adhered to the body wall and could be moved freely throughout all quadrants of the abdomen.

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Figure 1: The mass reflected out of a midline abdominal incision prior to excision.
Figure 2: When sectioned, the mass contained structures composed of several fragments of cartilage and bone and cystic areas.
Figure 3: Atrophic parenchyma.
Figure 4: Bundles of skeletal muscle within the teratoma.
Figure 5: Cystic epithelial-lined structure containing keratinaceous debris and occasional hair shafts.
Figure 6: Higher magnification of cystic epithelium showing hair shaft and stratified squamous keratinizing epithelium with abrupt focal transition to pseudostratified columnar epithelium with goblet cells.
Figure 7: Nodule of well-differentiated cartilage within adipose tissue in the mass.
Figure 8: Nodule of well-differentiated bone separated from adipose tissue by a thin bundle of skeletal muscle.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Comparative Medicine, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC

    Matthew D. Rosenbaum &  Dorcas O'Rourke

  2. IDEXX Laboratories, West Sacramento, CA

    David Gardiner

Authors
  1. Matthew D. Rosenbaum
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  2. David Gardiner
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  3. Dorcas O'Rourke
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Correspondence to Matthew D. Rosenbaum.

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Rosenbaum, M., Gardiner, D. & O'Rourke, D. Abdominal mass in a New Zealand white rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Lab Anim 42, 19–22 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.166

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