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The surging demand for donkey milk has led to a stronger focus on donkey husbandry and reproductive management, particularly in the peripartum period. Techniques to predict parturition are needed to avoid losses due to dystocias, which are frequently related to unattended foaling. In mares, pH and electrolyte analyses of pre-colostrum are used to predict parturition with a good accuracy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the pH of the mammary secretion using both a pH metre and test strips and the electrolytes (Na+, K + and Ca2+) in the mammary gland secretions of 9 jennies during the 5 days preceding parturition, to understand if the trends of these cations were comparable to those of the mare and to identify possible markers/thresholds of impending parturition. Ca2+ concentrations increased in the days before delivery from day −2 (p < 0.01) and 78% of the jennies foaled within 48 h of reaching the threshold of 20 mmol/L. Na + and K + levels remained constant as parturition approached. The pH decreased in the days before foaling, starting from day −1 (p < 0.05). However, it was not possible to deduce certain indications on the date of delivery based on electrolyte concentrations, nor on pH and at the current state of knowledge foaling alert systems are the only methods for ensuring prompt assistance during parturition. The ability to predict parturition for providing adequate assistance is essential in a donkey farm. pH and electrolytes of mammary gland secretions are used in mares to predict foaling, but no reference values are available for jennies. In our work, neither electrolyte nor pH evaluations proved to be reliable to predict with an adequate level of confidence the impeding parturition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Although less often requested in comparison with dogs, the collection of semen in cats can be necessary for artificial insemination, for semen evaluation in tom cats used for breeding and for semen storage. Urethral catheterisation after pharmacological induction with medetomidine has proved to be useful for the collection of semen in domestic cats. However, most of the previously used protocols require the administration of high doses of medetomidine that can increase the risk of side effects, especially on the cardiovascular system. In routine clinical practice, one safe and useful injectable anaesthetic protocol for short-term clinical investigations or surgery in cats involves premedication with low intramuscular doses of dexmedetomidine with methadone, followed by intravenous propofol bolus injection. We aimed to assess the usefulness of this injectable anaesthetic protocol for semen collection, via urethral catheterisation, in domestic cats. Methods The study was performed on 38 purebred, adult cats, during the breeding season, and semen was collected via urethral catheterisation using an injectable anaesthesia protocol with methadone (0.2 mg/kg) and dexmedetomidine (5 µg/kg) premedication, followed by induction with propofol. Results The anaesthetic protocol used in the present study allowed the collection of large-volume semen samples, characterised by good parameters and without side effects. Conclusions and relevance The results from the present study suggest that the injectable anaesthetic protocol using methadone and dexmedetomidine premedication, followed by induction with propofol, could be suitable and safe for the collection of a good-quality semen sample, via urethral catheterisation, in domestic cats. It can therefore be used as an alternative to previous medetomidine-based sedation protocols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]