Small Ruminant Emergencies: Bloat!

By: Meera Heller DVM PhD DACVIM-LA

Description: Bloat is a common emergency in small ruminants. We will briefly cover background on the ruminant forestomachs and then dive into triage and emergency treatment of the most common types of bloat

By the end of the session, attendees will be able to:

1. Review ruminant forestomach anatomy and function
2. Discuss the most common differential diagnoses
3. Describe steps for triage and emergency treatment of common types of bloat

Speaker Info: Dr. Meera Heller is a Professor of Clinical Livestock Medicine and Surgery at UC Davis. She received her DVM degree from UC Davis and completed an internship in large animal medicine and surgery at the Atlantic Veterinary College at the University of Prince Edward Island in Canada. After her internship, she returned to UC Davis for her residency in large animal internal medicine, followed by a PhD in Comparative Pathology under the mentorship of Dr. Joie Watson. Her first faculty job was at the University of Missouri in their Food Animal Medicine Service. She then returned to UC Davis in 2014 to start her current position. Her clinical interests are in medicine and surgery of ruminants and pigs, with a special focus on small ruminants. She also has an interest in acupuncture. Her research has ranged from basic research into the innate immune response to more clinical research such as pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic studies, diagnostic testing, transfusion medicine, and infectious/tick-borne diseases in small ruminants. She has a small herd of goats of various breeds, including some retired blood donors and her daughter’s Nubians, which she shows. When she is not working, she enjoys hiking, running, knitting, and trying to make goat cheese that her family will eat!