Determination of the time of death of dogs using atropine and pilocarpine in the early post-mortem period – an assessment of the usefulness of the method

Abstract

To determine the time of death in the early post-mortem period, i.e. up to a few hours or a few days, methods involving measurement of body temperature and observations of supravital reactions are used. One of the most promising methods is measurement of the reactivity of the pupil under the influence of substances such as those used in this study, atropine and pilocarpine. The research material was two groups of dogs, one with body weight over 40 kg and another under 10 kg, whose time of death was known. At 30, 60, 90, 120 and 180 minutes post-mortem, atropine or pilocarpine drops were placed in the conjunctival sac and the change in pupil diameter was measured. The study clearly showed that the method is useful in forensic estimation of the time of death of an animal. In order to verify the reliability of the method, there is a need for further study.