ECTOPIC PRIMARY ABDOMINAL PREGNANCY IN A PERSIAN CAT

Abstract

Ectopic pregnancies are common in human medicine, while they are rarely recorded in animals. This report describes a case of 2.5-year-old ectopic primary abdominal pregnancy in a 7-year-old Persian cat. The cat was admitted to the surgery clinic for routine ovariohysterectomy with no characteristic clinical symptoms. During surgery, ovaries, uterus and ligaments were normal, like in a non-pregnant cat. Four intra-abdominal fetuses of different developmental stages were found and carefully removed. Three fetuses were found free in the abdomen inside their gestational sacs. The fourth fetus was covered with omentum and had no gestational sac. The gestational sacs had different sizes (2-8 cm in diameter). Two of the fetuses were fully-haired with normal position of limbs. No complications were recorded during the surgery and 10 months post-operative. This case report adds to the database of ectopic pregnancies in cats and further illustrates their incidental nature.