PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS OF HEMATOLOGIC VALUES IN BARBARY SHEEP (AMMOTRAGUS LERVIA PALLAS, 1777)

Daniela Mello Vianna Ferrer 1 , Carlos Henrique Pizarro Borges 2 , Vera Lucia de Oliveira 3 and Denise de Mello Bobany* 1 . 1. UnifesoCentro Universitario Serra dos OrgaosTeresopolis-Rio de Janeiro-Brasil. 2. Ministerio da Agricultura, Pecuaria e Abastecimento, Secretaria de DefesaAgropecuaria,Departamento de Saúde AnimalBrasil. 3. Fundacao Rio-Zoo-Brasil. ...................................................................................................................... Manuscript Info Abstract ......................... ........................................................................ Manuscript History

The deficiency of information and updates related to normal haematological and biochemical parameters study of certain species, such as the case of Ammotraguslervia species (Barbary sheep), generates the need for further research in this area. Therefore, in this work were used five animals of the Ammotraguslervia species, one male and four females, to the preliminary study of its hematological parameters. All quantitative and qualitative determinations were established by conventional techniques, and used the same techniques of domestic ruminants. Haematological values obtained for the average Ammotraguslervia species were: RBC 13.17 x 10 6 /mm 3 ; 14.02 hemoglobin g/100 ml; PCV 42.20%; MCV 32.38 fl; MCH 10.72 pg; MCHC 33.18%; WBC 9.92 x 10 3 /mm 3 ; Basophils 0%; Eosinophils 3%; Band Neutrophils 3%; Segmented Neutrophils 66%; Lymphocytes 27%; Monocytes 1%. In the statistical analysis was determined just the average of the variables, just like standard deviation and confidence intervals, due to the small number of individuals and of inequality between the number of males and females. Standard techniques used in the preparation of haematological exams for the domestic ruminants are effective for Ammotraguslervia species. Haematological values obtained for the Ammotraguslervia species exhibit a variability regarding the data of hematological values described in the literature. The discoid biconcave format and the smaller size of the red blood cells observed in this study for the Ammotraguslervia species are equal to the shape and size of the cells described in the literature for the same species.
In the clinical pathology of wild animals field, few studies have been developed, mainly related to hematological and biochemical normal parameters of certain species. There is deficiency of information and many of the available studies in the literature are old or the variables used in this studies, have changed a lot since the preparation of same parameters, as climate, geographic distribution, eating habits and destruction of natural habitats. According to Peinado et al. (1999) there are several studies on the Hematology of Artiodactylas, but these are very incomplete and there are still several gaps in this area.
The species Ammotraguslervia (Barbary sheep, Aoudad) of the order Artiodactyla is of African origin, which occurs in Highlands in desert areas and semi-deserts areas of Morocco and Western Sahara to the Egypt and the Sudan (Wilson and Reeder, 2005), is small, with a frizzy hair and both sexes feature a large fringe on throat and chest region extending to the lower parts of the forelimbs. Its coloration varies between the brown sand color, being the lowest parts of moderately clear coloring, features prominent horns, strong and full of pleats, and the horns of adult males are larger and more prominent than the females (Casinello, 1998;Nowak, 1999).
The Ammotraguslervia is the wild sheep more common captive-breed, as it is the only one that adapts quickly (Tumbleson et al., 1970;Wallach and Boever, 1983;Jessup, 1999). In addition, there is a great ecological interest in this species, since many of these specimenswere removed from their natural habitats and transferred mostly to the Americas with the aim of its use for the practice of sport hunting (Boever, 1986;Nowak, 1999).
The great interesting in the study of Ammotraguslervia species is due to the fact that this is considered at risk of extinction, the category of vulnerable species (VU C1) as the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species classification (IUCN, 2016), as well as in Appendix 2 of CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) (Shackleton, 1997;Casinello, 1998;Nowak, 1999;CITES, 2016).
According to Tumbleson et al. (1970) the Ammotraguslervia species has great tendency to the natural occurrence of atherosclerosis and the study of their values of serum biochemical and haematological parameters can help establish this species as model animal for studies of the disease.
This work aims to contribute with preliminary standards haematological parameters for Ammotraguslervia species in order to decrease the existing shortcomings in the literature, improving knowledge of data in the area of wild ruminants.

Material and Methods:-
It was studied five animals of the Ammotraguslervia species, from the livestock of Rio Zoo Foundation/R.J., one male and four females, clinically healthy.
The females were marked with numbered rings in his ears, and the male did not present any markup. This work was not taken into consideration the age of the animals.
Immediately after venipuncture were made three smears with the blood sample, without any contact with the anticoagulant, and later the blood was transferred to a tube containing EDTA (Vacutainer EDTA 26 BD brand). After the homogenization of the sample with the anticoagulant and air-drying of smears, with their respective IDs, the samples were immediately processed in own laboratory of Rio-Zoo Foundation.
All of the following quantitative and qualitative determinations were established by conventional techniques according to Schalm  RBC RBC PCV b) Leukogram: white blood cell count (WBC -hemocytometer) and differential leukocyte count, as well as May-Grünwald-Giemsa stain blood smears (MGG) for qualitative analysis of red and white cells (Rullier, 1968).
On statistical analysis of hematological values of the five animals of the Ammotraguslervia species was determined only the average of the variables studied, as well as the values of standard deviation and confidence interval (lower and upper limit), due to the small number of individuals and of inequality between the number of males and females, which made it impossible for a more specific statistical survey on the difference between these averages.

Results:-
It was not necessary the use of tranquilizers on animals of Rio-Zoo Found by the fact that, in addition to these animals are already accustomed to the daily management of their handlers, the speed of the process and the low nuisance which is caused to animals (Fig. 1), offering a final result of the analysis of the material without interference from medication. In relation to the shape and size of the blood cells of the Ammotraguslervia species, it was observed that the red blood cells present a discoid biconcave format in the proportion sizes as the domestic goats and sheeps cells.
The individualized results obtained from peripheral blood samples of the five animals of the Ammotraguslervia species (Barbary sheep) are described in tables 1 and 2, respectively.  MnMonocutes % e (mm 3 ) BandBand neutrophils % e (mm 3 ) The mean Haematological values of the eritrograms and leucograms of the five animals of the Ammotraguslervia species studied are described in table 3, as well as the values of standard deviation and confidence interval (lower and upper limit).

Discussion:-
It was possible to observe the existence of similarity between the results described in the literature for the Ammotraguslervia species, with few differences in relation to some variables for both the highest values of the parameters as to the lower values of the parameters. This is according to Peinado et al. (1999) that report be, the occurrence of these differences, probably due to the effects of climate, captivity, age, methodology used in the preparation of the samples and biological agents as was noted during the preparation of this species.  15.44 x 10 6 / mm 3 ) were lower than those found by Tumbleson et al. (1970) studying the blood samples of twenty-one copies of Ammotraguslervia (11.25 to 23.42 x 10 6 mm 3 ), despite the average value (13.17 x 10 6 / mm 3 ) of this work is within the confidence interval reported by the authors.
Haematological values obtained for Red Blood Cells (RBC) on this work for the Ammotraguslervia species present significant difference compared to haematological values described by Kitchen (1986)  However, the value determined in this study was higher than the values found for Peinado et al. (1999), Wallach and Boever (1983), Kitchen (1986) and Fowler (2003).

White blood cells:-
The value for the White blod cells (WBC) obtained for the upper limit of the confidence interval of five animals of Ammotraguslervia species (9.92 x 10 3 / mm 3 and 12.11 x 103/ mm 3 ) on this study were below the values reported by Tumbleson et al. (1970), for twenty-one animals of Ammotraguslervia species, that was 11.2 x 10 3 / mm 3 for average and 17.0 x 10 3 to 5.21/mm 3 for confidence interval, lower, too, that was published by Kitchen (1986) and Fowler (2003) (92 x 10 3 / mm 3 13.2 and 14.8 x 10 3 /mm 3 ), but were higher when compared with the findings of Peinado et al. (1999) working with six animals (3.70 x 10 3 / mm 3 and 6.0 x 10 3 / mm 3 ).
Although the value obtained for the lower limit (7.73 x 10 3 / mm 3 ) of the confidence interval, in this work is higher than the value obtained by Tumbleson et al. (1970) to the lower limit (5.21 x 10 3 / mm 3 ) and Peinado et al. (1999) (1.85 x 10 3 / mm 3 ), but lower than the values quoted by Kitchen (1986) and Fowler (2003) that was 11.6 x 10 3 / mm 3 .

Differential leukocyte count:-
During the study of the differential leukocyte counts for Ammotraguslervia species values obtained for Segmented Neutrophils were average of 66% and for its limits of the confidence interval 53% to 79%, values similar to those

Conclusions:-
The results obtained in this study are likely to minimize the difficulties faced by Veterinarians who specialize in wildlife, and technicians who work in Zoological Parks. The continuation of research not only with haematological parameters, but also with biochemical, enzimological and genetic studies that in future will provide subsidies for a better evaluation of the sick animals of this Ammotraguslervia species, particularly regarding the vulnerabilities of the species to diseases that before had no contact, including zoonoses, that concerns of the human population and public health.