ACUTE DISSEMINATED TOXOPLASMOSIS IN A JUVENILE CHEETAH (ACINONYX JUBATUS)

Abstract A juvenile cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) died with rapidly progressive pyrexia, tachypnea, abdominal effusion, and hepatomegaly. Postmortem examination revealed lesions consistent with acute disseminated infection with Toxoplasma gondii. The presence of this organism was confirmed in multiple organs by immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reaction. To the best of our knowledge, we propose this to be the first reported case of primary acute disseminated toxoplasmosis in a cheetah.