The 61-year-old patient broke every clinical mold. At nearly 400 pounds and with a bite force exceeding 3,000 PSI, Bill, a Siamese crocodile at Utah’s Hogle Zoo, doesn’t fit a routine veterinary playbook. So when he began showing signs of sickness last fall, his care team knew standard diagnostics would only go so far.

“Bill was showing decreased appetite, loss of body condition, and bloating on the left side of his abdomen,” says Lauren Smith, DVM, Dipl. ACZM, a board-certified specialist in zoological medicine and clinical veterinarian at Hogle Zoo. But Bill’s bloodwork came back normal, stumping his clinical team.

Radiographs are typically the first line of imaging, Smith says, but in Bill’s case, size and anatomy created clear limitations. “While X-rays are a great diagnostic tool, they were very unlikely to provide the answers we needed,” she says. CT imaging offered a more complete path forward—but it required leaving the zoo.
Fortunately, Hogle Zoo knew exactly who to call, thanks to a prior partnership with University of Utah Health. The question wasn’t just whether 10-foot-long Bill could be scanned, but whether he could safely enter a human radiology suite. What followed was weeks of coordination involving more than 20 people, specialized restraint systems, and sedation protocols designed to manage risk at every step.

Transport was anything but routine. Under veterinary supervision, Bill was lightly sedated, secured to a custom transport platform, and moved into University of Utah Health’s radiology department for a full-body CT. Erika Crook, DVM, Dipl. ACZM, a board-certified specialist in zoological medicine and director of animal health at Hogle Zoo, says the zoo’s maintenance team built a heavy-duty board compatible with CT imaging, allowing Bill to remain on the same platform for both transport and scanning.

Safety—of both Bill and the staff—remained paramount, Smith says. “These crocodiles are incredibly powerful, and the Hogle team did extensive preparation to ensure everyone involved was protected.”

But transport was only part of the challenge. The CT exam itself introduced additional complexity. For starters, Bill exceeded the dimensions of the CT table, requiring careful positioning to scan his entire body.

Scott Ehrgott, RT (R)(CT), CT technologist at University of Utah Health, says the team also adjusted technical parameters to accommodate his anatomy. “We knew more penetration would be necessary given Bill’s tough skin and body habitus,” he says. The team used 140 kVp throughout the scan and increased mAs incrementally from the head and neck through the chest, abdomen, and pelvis.

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