Abstract:
Urine samples can be a very useful diagnostic tool for the evaluation of animal health. In this
article, a simple technique to collect urine from the Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) was
described, based on a similar unpublished technique developed for the American alligator
(Alligator mississippiensis) using a canine urinary catheter. With this technique, it was possible
to collect relatively clean urine samples from Nile crocodiles of different sizes using canine
urinary catheters or small diameter stomach tubes. Based on the gross anatomical features
of the cloaca of the Nile crocodile, it was confirmed that urine accumulates in a chamber
consisting of the urodeum and coprodeum. Faecal material is stored temporarily in the very
short rectum, which is separated from the urinary chamber by the rectocoprodeal sphincter.
