Effects of various anaesthetics in chemical capture on different species of ungulates and carnivores

Abid Mehmood, Ph.D. M.Phil.

Doctoral thesis

Abstract:

Chemical capture of animals has advanced as an essential tool in wildlife management over the past few years. However, the need to assess the implications such as cardiorespiratory depression and success (without any severe complication) of a given combination of anaesthetics persists for various species. This thesis was designed to assess the effects of various combinations of anaesthetics (ketamine-medetomidine, KM; ketamine-xylazine, KX: thiafentanil-ketamine-medetomidine, TKM; thiafentanil-ketamine-xylazine, TKX; and ketamine-xylazine-medetomidine, TXM) on respiration rate, heart rate, rectal temperature, blood oxygen saturation, non-invasive blood pressure, quality and duration of induction, anaesthesia and recovery in Arabian striped hyaena (Hyaena hyaena sultana), Northeast African cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus soemmeringii), Patterson’s eland (Taurotragus oryx pattersonianus), Barbary sheep (Ammotragus lervia), and Beisa oryx (Oryx beisa beisa). The data were collected during different routine management operations requiring chemical capture. The animals were immobilised by projecting a dart through a dart gun. The vital signs were monitored through a pulse oximeter. The arterial blood gas samples were analysed through ISTAT point of care hand-held analyser, and the haematological and biochemistry samples were analysed through Abbott CELL-DYN® 3700 Haematology Analyser or Abbott Architect c4000 clinical chemistry analyser; or through an external laboratory. The data were analysed through the Shapiro–Wilk test (for normality), general linear model, and Wilcoxon matched-pairs test. KM combination was more suitable for the immobilisation of Arabian striped hyaena, providing a better quality of induction, anaesthesia and recovery compared to KX. Similar results were achieved with TKX and TKM Patterson’s eland, and with KX and KXM for Barbary sheep and Beisa oryx. However, KX resulted in hypoxaemia in Barbary sheep, whereas no hypoxaemia was observed with KXM. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) in arterial oxygen saturation, the partial pressure of O2, the arterial partial pressure of CO2, bicarbonates, and pH before and after oxygen supplementation in Arabian striped hyaena and Northeast African cheetah suggesting that the oxygen may adequately treat hypoxemia during field immobilisation with ketamine-medetomidine. Further studies are suggested to assess the implications of KX and KXM combinations in Barbary sheep and Beisa oryx. The outcomes of the current study provide valuable information on the physiological responses, critical complications associated with various combinations on the studied species, and field compensation of these complications to the practitioners working with semi-captive species of carnivores and ungulates.

Keywords

Acid-base balance, anaesthesia, arterial blood gas, α-2 adrenergic agonist, carnivores, chemical immobilisation, hypoxaemia, island, opioids, oximetry, oxygen semi-captive, supplementation, ungulates, wildlife management

Jazyk práce: English

Datum vytvoření / odevzdání či podání práce: 19. 11. 2020

Obhajoba závěrečné práce

• Obhajoba proběhla 22. 9. 2020
• Vedúci: prof. RNDr. Pavla Hejcmanová, Ph.D.
• Oponent: Markéta Sedmíková, Ph.D., prof. Ing. Mgr., Jiří Váhala, externi, Roman Vodička, externi

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences

Doctoral programme / odbor / specializace:
Agricultural Specialization / Tropical and Subtropical Agriculture / Živočišná výroba