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Table 3 Clinical scoring system to assess health status
| Parameter | Evaluation scale (including but not limited to these clinical signs) | Parameter |
|---|---|---|
| General appearance | Normal, alert | 0 |
| Abnormal or hunched posture, dull appearance to eyes, dehydration, notable weight loss | 1 | |
| Stupor: A state of impaired consciousness characterised by a marked diminution in the capacity to react to environmental stimuli | 2 | |
| Sopor: a deep, lethargic or unnatural sleep | 3 | |
| Coma: a state of extreme unresponsiveness, in which an individual exhibits no voluntary movement or behaviour. Even painful stimuli (actions which, when performed on a healthy individual, result in reactions) are unable to affect any response, and normal reflexes may be lost | 4 | |
| Skin and fur | Normal | 0 |
| Ruffled fur, unkept appearance | 1 | |
| Rash, pallor, redness, icterus, petechiae, ccchymoses, wound, abscess, ulcer | 2 | |
| Respiration | Normal | 0 |
| Increased (>60) or decreased respiration rate per minute (<50/min), cough, sneezing | 1 | |
| Dyspnoea, open mouth breathing, cyanosis | 2 | |
| Faeces and urine | Normal consistency and volume | 0 |
| Decreased faeces, fry, wet and pasty, discoloration decreased urine, discoloration | 1 | |
| Faeces absent | 2 | |
| Liquid faeces (if debilitating), urine absent, blood in faeces or urine | 3 | |
| Food intake | Normal | 0 |
| Decreased (eating less than half normal food intake) | 1 | |
| Eating biscuits but no fruit or pellets | 2 | |
| Severely decreased (not eating biscuits) | 3 | |
| Locomotor activity | Normal | 0 |
| Hyperactivity (circling, increased aggression); Hypoactivity (hunched, inactive on camera, active with people in room) | 1 | |
| Ataxia, neurological signs (tremors, head tilt), loss of interest in treats | 2 | |
| Reluctant to move, uses cage for support, difficulty getting to food or water (decreased response to human presence), seizures | 3 | |
| Down with no or minimal response to human approach, coma | 4 | |
| Position in the cagea | Upper part | |
| Bottom part | ||
| Social behavioura | Scent-marking | |
| Twisting | ||
| Slit stare | ||
| Grooming | ||
| Sitting and resting | ||
| Walking, running, climbing and jumping gaps between objects | ||
| ‘Bouncing gait’: running with an exaggerated bouncing movement and frequently included bouncing off objects |
