International Giant Otter Studbook Husbandry and Management

healthy/normal rate. Conducting regular ultrasounds is a very effective tool to monitor her
health condition and status of pregnancy. Ultrasounds were also conducted at varying times to
determine if this female was pregnant and at other times when she appeared pregnant. False
pregnancies (i.e. at least three) were confirmed via ultrasound.
The aforementioned female has also been trained to allow milk samples to be drawn after litter
loss (see Chapter 3 and Section 5 below). (This must only be done after litter loss and via
training.) Unfortunately, the only sample drawn was lost due to technical reasons, but training
and study will continue at this institution to gather more samples. No other institutions are
known to have drawn milk samples from giant otters and information gathered could be very
helpful to determine ideal handrearing replacement milk formulas for this species.
A 15 year old male (at Dortmund Zoo) was trained to allow physiological information, such as
resting heart rate, respiration, and body temperature (i.e. a thermometer is placed under the skin
folds of the otter’s arm pit) to be monitored. As well, this individual allows the examination of
his body condition through hand palpation via husbandry training. This otter also has been
trained to receive portable ultrasound and initial ultrasound sessions have already begun
(although pictures from him have not been attained yet; see Chapter 3).
For example, little information is available on precise giant otter body temperatures. No rectal
body temperature of healthy giant otters (neither cubs nor adults) that are not under anesthesia
or immobilization have been found or been reported. At Dortmund Zoo, a body temperature,
taken with an oral thermometer placed snugly between the loose skin of the armpit of a 15 year
old adult male giant otter, was taken under normal daily circumstances via training (i.e. otter
was not immobilized or stressed). The otter’s temperature was 37.28 o C when he was at rest (i.e.
he was lying down but not sleeping). Unfortunately, it is not clear if this temperature can be
compared with rectal temperatures. Although the temperature of an adult domesticated ferret
was taken in the same manner (under the skin folds of his armpit, during rest) and it was 37.8 o C.
A couple minutes after the ferret got up from this resting state (i.e. he moved around a little), his
rectal temperature was 38.0 o C.
Heart and respiration rates were also gathered from the aforementioned otter under the same
circumstances (via training). Heart rate was monitored either with the hand of the trainer or
with a stethoscope and respiration was visually monitored. Respiration occurred at 7
respirations per 15 seconds (or 28 respirations/minute) and heart beat varied from 33-34 and 28
heart beats/15 seconds when the otter was at rest during the same training session (i.e. he was
not sleeping, but just lying down). When the otter was in full or deep sleep 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12
respirations/minute were observed on varying occasions. When the otter was in a light sleep 13,
14, 15 respirations/minute were observed. At rest 24, 20, 19, and 18 respirations per minute
have also been observed on varying occasions.
If you have applicable information you would like to contribute, please see part B above for
instructions. As well if you have interest to research or train or are engaging in such studies or
husbandry training/procedures already, please alert the compiler/author.
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