Field immobilization of raccoons with ketamine hydrochloride and xylazine hydrochloride

Abstract

Belant J. L. 1995. Field immobilization of raccoons with ketamine hydrochloride and xylazine hydrochloride. Acta Theriologica 40: 327-330.A 5:1 combination o f ketamine hydrochloride (KH) and xylazine hydrochloride (XH) was used to immobilize raccoons Procyon lotor (Linnaeus, 1758). Ten raccoons were intramuscularly injected a total of 11 times with dosages between 22.0 to 38.2 mg/kg KH and 4.4 to 7.6 mg/kg XH. Mean (± SE) induction time (3.4 ± 0.5 min), recovery time (101.2 ± 27.8 min), and resting heart rate (92 ± 7.6 bpm) was similar to values reported for captive raccoons immobilized with 10 mg/kg KH and 2 mg/kg XH. Mean body temperature decreased 1.3°C between 0 and 20 min post-recumbency. Respiration (23 ± 4.0) was generally deep and consistent. A mixture of 5:1 KH/XH is a suitable immobilizing agent for wild raccoons during field studies. State

Serological Investigation of Heartland Virus (Bunyaviridae: Phlebovirus) Exposure in Wild and Domestic Animals Adjacent to Human Case Sites in Missouri 2012–2013

“…Deer sera were obtained from pooled blood in the body cavities of hunter-killed deer during January and February 2013. Northern raccoons, Virginia opossums, fox squirrels, and cottontails were trapped in August 2012 and summer of 2013 using Tomahawk traps (Tomahawk Live Traps, Hazelhurst, WI) and anesthetized with either isoflurane in customized anesthesia chambers similar to those described previously 15 or by intramuscular injection of ketamine/xylazine (up to 60:12 mg/kg *Address correspondence to Aaron C. Brault 16 Blood from these wild mammals was drawn from either the jugular or saphenous vein and placed into collection tubes containing ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and/or serum separator tubes. These tubes were centrifuged in the field for separation of serum as described above and sera were transferred to cryovials for freezing and transport.…”

Spatial interrelations between raccoons (Procyon lotor), red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), and ground-nesting birds in a Special Protection Area of Germany

“…If animals were heavy enough, they were immobilized with an intramuscular injection of a ketamine-xylazine hydrochloride combination via a blowpipe. This mixture has been applied in numerous previous studies due to its high therapeutic index (Wiesner and von Hegel 1985) and is suitable for red foxes (Travaini et al 1992;Kaphegyi 2002) and raccoons (Belant 1995;Michler et al 2003Michler et al , 2015. For immobilization of raccoons, we used doses of 15 mg ketamine and 3 mg xylazine per kg body weight (Michler et al 2015).…”

Efficacy of Zoletil® for Field Immobilization of Raccoons

“…Ketamine and combinations of ketamine and xylazine have provided suitable immobilization of raccoons (Deresienski andRupprecht 1989, Belant 1995); however, some studies have noted muscle spasms and vomiting (6/18 raccoons) directly after induction (Deresienski and Rupprecht 1989). Raccoons also were reported to experience nasal discharge, hypersalivation, and minor muscle spasms prior to arousal (Belant 1995). These characteristics are undesirable during field manipulations that require complete immobilization, such as bioelectrical impedance analysis (Bowen et al 1999).…”