Thermal imaging cameras are being used to monitor the stress levels in zoo animals and to keep those stress levels to a minimum.
It has been reported that many animals are prone to emotional stress and the physical side effects of anaesthetics, and in some cases treatment does more harm than good.
A thermal camera can provide the necessary information in order to determine the correct treatment in a non invasive and stress free way.
Inflammation and injury shows up warmer than normal or scar tissue does and is easy for a thermal camera to pick up.
Sometimes the zoo uses their thermal camera to prove that there is no problem present, preventing unnecessary use of antibiotics. They have also used them for cold blooded animals to find injury and inflammation.
The zoo is also keen to try and use the thermal imager to test animals being moved to different locations for tuberculosis.
Once the tuberculosis antigens have been injected into the animal, the zoo must wait three days to ensure that no swelling has occurred. Traditional methods mean that they would then have to re-capture and sedate the animal again to check for swelling.
They would like to use the thermal camera to assess whether this swelling has occurred from a distance in a non-invasive way
If you are interested in Veterinary thermography, take a look at the P660 Thermal Imaging Camera. Whichever camera you ultimately choose, you will need a camera with a high sensitivity for similar applications.
Written by Sara Thomson
