Acute Lantana camara poisoning in a Boer goat kid : case report

Abstract

Acute Lantana camara poisoning in a Boer goat kid is described. The animal was part of a flock of boer goats that was introduced from the Kalahari thornveld, where the plant does not occur, to an area where the plant grew abundantly. At necropsy, the animal was severely icteric, dehydrated and constipated, with hepatosis, distention of the gall-bladder and nephrosis, but no skin lesions. Histopathological findings of the liver confirmed moderate hepatosis with single-cell necrosis and bile stasis. The pathology is consistent with that described in acute Lantana poisoning in cattle, sheep and goats. The absence of photosensitisation may be attributed to relatively mild liver damage, or the rapid course of this toxicosis.