Toxic Metals and Animal Health

The potential toxicity of metals and their impact on animal health are rarely addressed in textbooks. Yet, not least due to increasing environmental concerns, the diagnosis and treatment of metal-related ailments in companionand grazing animals is starting to become an important aspect of daily practice for veterinarians and animal naturopaths. Furthermore, simply raising awareness of metal toxicity and animal health could lead to simple measures such as species-appropriate, individualized feeding and supplementation, saving animal owners considerable stress and expense.

Veterinarian and toxicologist Dr. Ramesh C. Gupta, Professor at the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Louisville School of Medicine, focuses on the pharmacokinetics and toxicokinetics of metals. In his writings, he emphasizes that the effects of toxic metals on animal health should be addressed more, because it is known that high levels of the following toxic metals affect animal fertility, such as:

• Cadmium: Ischemic necrosis of the testicle
• Chromium: Decreased testosterone; ↓ sperm count
• Lead: Decreased testosterone; ↓ sperm count; ↓ fertilization rates
• Mercury: Reduced sperm quality

Gupta emphasizes that lead and cadmium are ubiquitous heavy metals associated with both testicular toxicity and impaired fertility in a range of animal species.

Cadmium can impair the cellular metabolism of zinc, an essential trace element necessary for normal reproductive function. In addition to cadmium exposure, zinc deficiency may make individuals more susceptible to the toxic effects of cadmium (Akinloye et al., 2006). Pretreatment with zinc has been reported to reduce cadmium-induced Leydig cell cytotoxicity and neoplasia in male animals (Thomas, 1995). The primary function of Leydig cells is testosterone synthesis.

The ovaries appear to be less sensitive to the toxic effects of metals than the testes. However, cadmium seems to inhibit the release of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) in the ovaries (Hoyer, 2006).

Gold treatments in domestic animals can cause congenital malformations. In 1975, the American veterinarian Dr. Terry Durkes from Marion, Indiana, began treating hip dysplasia in dogs with gold implants. In Europe, starting around 1988, the Danish veterinarian Dr. Jens Klitsgaard from Aalborg used gold implants in dogs and cats. In 1994, Ralf Schweda from Sibbesse (Hildesheim) became the first German veterinarian to learn the therapy from him and introduce it in Germany. Unfortunately, the method is now widespread in domestic animals (especially dogs, cats, and horses) and has been used tens of thousands of times.

Platinum compounds are toxic and chemotherapy treatment with cisplatin C is reported to be embryotoxic or nephrotoxic and to cause malformations in unborn animals.

In addition, excessive cobalt exposure can potentially disrupt normal spermatogenesis, and severe cobalt poisoning can lead to testicular problems (Thomas, 1995). Chromium and vanadium have also been associated with adverse reproductive effects (Thomas and Thomas, 2001).

For more information regarding the toxicity of metals, contact us.

Metal analysis is not new. Blood metal tests have been carried out for decades, albeit to a limited extent. The minerals calcium, magnesium, potassium and phosphorus are routinely tested in the blood. Chloride and the trace element iron are also part of a routine blood test. The measured values ​​of this standard test reflect the current state of supply. Blood values ​​show whether the feed administered meets the animal's current needs. It must be remembered that the self-regulation of the organism, known as homeostasis, draws minerals such as magnesium from the muscles when the current supply does not meet the animal's stress level. Thus magnesium concentration inf  blood may be normal value, but if the animal experiences muscle cramps it signals that the current magnesium intake is inadequate.

Let’s look at magnesium: Fur or tissue analysis indicates long-term stress and/or chronic undersupply. Fur analysis is not a replacement for conventional blood tests, but a necessary addition that helps to understand cause and effect. A comparison of magnesium levels in blood and fur would show that the supply was suboptimal over a longer period of time. The muscle storage reserves were not sufficiently filled. Muscle cramps therefore occur in a state of stress.

Blood and fur tests do not make each other superfluous; they complement each other.