Vaginally use of iButton loggers to measure body temperature in grazing red deer (Cervus elaphus)

Abstract

When collecting accurate physiological data, it is important to eliminate human interference and have a continuous recording. Particularly important in wild animals, non-invasive methods for measuring body temperature can be useful in monitoring health status and researching environmental and climatic effects. The aim of this study was to describe two methods for automatic recording of body temperature by means of a vaginal device in red deer (Cervus elaphus). Automatic thermal recording devices (iButton) were placed adhered to a vaginal sponge (10 animals, 10 days) and/or CIDR-G (13 animals, 10 days); all females were xylazine sedated first. All devices were successfully recovered and only one of them failed. In all cases, the devices recorded a rhythmic pattern of body temperature, and no major inconveniences were observed, suggesting that the iButton device can be successfully used in cases where continuous body temperature recording is required without any mayor interference caused by the handling itself.