Bacterial cholecystitis with cardiac and pulmonary dissemination in a blue-naped mousebird (Urocolius macrourus)

A blue-naped mousebird (Urocolius macrourus) was diagnosed by gross necrops y and histopathology as having a chronic, fibrosing bacterial cholecystitis . Acute, severe, necrotizing pneumonia and myocarditis also were present wi th intralesional gram-negative bacteria. The bacteria within the lungs and heart were suspected to have spread from the biliary tract because of the p attern of distribution and similar gram-staining characteristics. Enterobac ter sp. and Escherichia roll were cultured from the pulmonary lesions. Cloa cal cultures in clinically normal blue-naped mousebirds and speckled mouseb irds (Colius striatus) yielded both Enterobacter sp. and E. coli. We hypoth esize a pathogenesis in this bird consisting of biliary stasis of unknown e tiology and eventual infection of the biliary tract by the normal gram-nega tive gastrointestinal flora. Death was believed to be a result of cardiac a nd respiratory dysfunction secondary to the bacterial dissemination from th e biliary tree and endotoxemia.