ABSTRACT:Safe and reliable capture techniques for wild animals are important for ecologic studies and management operations. We assessed the efficiency of ketamine-medetomidine (K:M) injection and reversal with atipamezole. We anesthetized 67 raccoons (Procyon lotor; 34 males, 33 females) 103 times (individuals captured between one and five times) from April 2009-October 2010 in Mont-Orford Provincial Park, Quebec, Canada. We administered a 1:1 mixture by volume of ketamine and medetomidine by intramuscular injection. Mean (6SD) induction times for males and females were 6.162.8 and 6.663.7 min, respectively. Mean induction time was 2 min longer for juveniles than for adults (7.863.9 and 5.862.9 min, respectively) and longer in autumn than in spring for adults (7.763.8 and 5.462.9 min, respectively). Recovery time after administration of atipamezole was 9.663.8 and 8.464.4 min for males and females, respectively. Recovery time was longer in spring than in autumn (10.264 and 7.463.8 min, respectively) for adults. Induction time increased by 166% after five captures of the same individual. Immobilization did not affect body mass, adult survival, or female reproductive success. We suggest the K:M mixture used is a safe and reliable method for anesthetizing raccoons in field conditions.