Muscle tremors observed in white rhinoceroses immobilised with either etorphine–azaperone or etorphine–midazolam : an initial study
dc.contributor.author | Nasr, Mary | |
dc.contributor.author | Meyer, Leith Carl Rodney | |
dc.contributor.author | Buss, Peter Erik | |
dc.contributor.author | Fabregas, María C. | |
dc.contributor.author | Gleed, Robin D. | |
dc.contributor.author | Boesch, Jordyn M. | |
dc.contributor.author | Pohlin, Friederike | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2022-05-05T12:11:00Z | |
dc.date.available | 2022-05-05T12:11:00Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2021-06 | |
dc.description.abstract | Etorphine–azaperone is the most commonly used drug combination for chemical immobilisation of free-ranging white rhinoceroses, but causes several profound physiological disturbances, including muscle tremors. The addition of benzodiazepine sedatives, such as midazolam, has been proposed to reduce the muscular rigidity and tremors in immobilised rhinoceroses. Twenty-three free-ranging, sub-adult white rhinoceros bulls were darted and captured using a combination of etorphine plus either azaperone or midazolam. Skeletal muscle tremors were visually evaluated and scored by an experienced veterinarian, and tremor scores and distance run were compared between groups using the Wilcoxon rank sum test. No statistical differences were observed in tremor scores (p = 0.435) or distance run (p = 0.711) between the two groups, and no correlation between these variables was detected (r = –0.628; p = 0.807). Etorphine–midazolam was as effective as etorphine–azaperone at immobilising rhinoceroses, with animals running similar distances. Although the addition of midazolam to the etorphine did not reduce tremor scores compared to azaperone, it might have other beneficial immobilising effects in rhinoceroses, and further investigation is necessary to elucidate possible methods of reducing muscle tremoring during chemical immobilisation of rhinoceroses. | en_US |
dc.description.department | Centre for Veterinary Wildlife Studies | en_US |
dc.description.department | Paraclinical Sciences | en_US |
dc.description.department | Production Animal Studies | en_US |
dc.description.librarian | am2022 | en_US |
dc.description.sponsorship | The Wildlife Group of the South African Veterinary Association, the National Research Foundation (NRF), the International Rhino Foundation and the Faculty of Veterinary Science of the University of Pretoria. | en_US |
dc.description.uri | http://www.jsava.co.za | en_US |
dc.identifier.citation | Nasr, M., Meyer, L.C.R., Buss, P., Fàbregas, M.C., Gleed, R.D., Boesch, J.M. et al., 2021, ‘Muscle tremors observed in white rhinoceroses immobilised with either etorphine–azaperone or etorphine–midazolam: An initial study’, Journal of the South African Veterinary Association 92(0), a2142. https://DOI.org/10.4102/jsava.v92i0.2142. | en_US |
dc.identifier.issn | 1019-9128 (print) | |
dc.identifier.issn | 2224-9435 (online) | |
dc.identifier.other | 10.4102/jsava.v92i0.2142 | |
dc.identifier.uri | https://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/85101 | |
dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
dc.publisher | AOSIS OpenJournals | en_US |
dc.rights | © 2021. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License. | en_US |
dc.subject | Muscle tremors | en_US |
dc.subject | Etorphine | en_US |
dc.subject | Midazolam | en_US |
dc.subject | Azaperone | en_US |
dc.subject | Immobilisation | en_US |
dc.subject | Muscle relaxation | en_US |
dc.subject | Butorphanol | en_US |
dc.subject | White rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) | en_US |
dc.title | Muscle tremors observed in white rhinoceroses immobilised with either etorphine–azaperone or etorphine–midazolam : an initial study | en_US |
dc.type | Article | en_US |