Field immobilization of Desert Bobcats (Lynx rufus) using a Tiletamine-Zolazepam anesthetic combination

Guillermo Romero-Figueroa ^[1] ; Ricardo Rodríguez-Estrella ^[2] ; Luz Adriana Tapia-Cabazos ^[1]
1. [1] Universidad Autónoma de Baja California
  
  Universidad Autónoma de Baja California
  
  México
2. [2] Programa de Planeación Ambiental y Conservación, Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste, S.C., La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico
Localización: Veterinaria México, ISSN 0301-5092, Vol. 7, Nº. 4, 2020
Idioma: inglés
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Resumen
- Chemical immobilization is used to minimize stress and pain while safely handling wild animals under field conditions. Eight wild bobcats (Lynx rufus) were immobilized for radio collar fittings between March 2005 and March 2007, using a commercial tiletamine hydrochloride-zolazepam hydrochloride combination (Zoletil® Virbac, Carros, France). Bobcats were captured using soft catch spring traps (Victor No. 3) in the Sonoran Desert of Baja California Sur, Mexico. A mean (±SD) intramuscular total dose of 44.3 ± 2.9 mg (6.0 mg kg–1) produced an induction time of 9 ± 4.9 min, and a duration of cataleptic anesthesia of 46.5 ±11.4 min. No adverse reactions were observed in animals during handling, and telemetry monitoring indicated that all individuals were alive for at least one year after the procedure. The results of this study indicate that use of tiletamine-zolazepam administered at 6 mg/kg dose is suitable for short-term chemical immobilization of bobcats in the wild.