It shows that plant eating is a common behavior in normal dogs and cats, although it is less common in cats than in dogs. Without supporting the rear end, spinal damage is risked.Chinchillas are equally timorous and rarely if ever bite. In tamer animals, they may be suspended with one hand behind the front legs, cupped between thumb and fingers from the dorsal aspect, with the other hand supporting the hindlimbs. Reduced consciousness (not unconscious) Sensitive to metallic sounds. In rabbits, the ‘shock’ organ is the lungs, and during intense stress the pulmonary circulation can go into spasm, making the hypoxia due to breath-holding even worse, even to the point of collapse and cardiac arrest!Acepromazine (ACP) can be used at doses of 0.2 mg/kg in ferrets, 0.5 mg/kg in rabbits and 0.5–1 mg/kg in rats, mice, hamsters, chinchillas and guinea pigs. It may however be reversed with 0.5 mg/kg butorphanol intravenously, or 0.05 mg/kg buprenorphine, both of which will counteract the fentanyl and its analgesia and substitute their own pain relief.Alternatively, to provide anaesthetic depth fentanyl/fluanisone may be combined with diazepam at a dose of 0.3 mL HypnormThe fentanyl part may be reversed with buprenorphine or butorphanol given intravenously. For Virginia opossums that are tame, one had may be used to grasp around the pectoral girdle and the other to support the rear end in a similar fashion to that described for domestic rats. More often, ketamine is combined with other drugs such as the alpha-2 agonists xylazine and medetomidine. Factors that should be considered prior to the anaesthesia of small mammals are outlined below.Many rodents and lagomorphs suffer from low-grade respiratory infection all of their lives. CHEMICAL restraint can be extremely useful as an aid to diagnostic or minor surgical procedures or in the control of animals which have a potentially dangerous temperament.

Ketamine may be used alone for chemical restraint in the ferret at doses of 10–20 mg/kg but, as with cats and dogs, the muscle relaxation is poor and salivation can be a problem. The other operator may then take a jugular sample with a 23–25 gauge needle. Abstract. Dimming the lighting, and reducing noise and other stress can aid in control.The guinea pig should be grasped behind the forelimbs from the dorsal aspect with one hand, while the other is placed beneath the hindlimbs to support its weight. Not to be trusted. Algorithms are presented for a given category of patient, leading the practitioner through a decision making strategy to arrive at examples of sedation or chemical restraint protocols that are commonly found to be effective by the author.We use cookies to help provide and enhance our service and tailor content and ads.

There are also specific rabbit papooses that encircle the rabbit, but leave the head and ears free.

Their disadvantages include severe hypotensive effects, and that once administered they are more difficult to control than a gaseous anaesthetic.

In ferrets, 10–30 mg/kg ketamine may be used with 1–2 mg/kg xylazine (Flecknell, 1998), preferably giving the xylazine 5–10 minutes before the ketamine.Ketamine is used at a dose of 5–10 mg/kg in conjunction with medetomidine at 0.1–0.25 mg/kg and butorphanol at 0.5 mg/kg or with xylazine at 5 mg/kg (Flecknell, 2000). The latter should be used with caution as it is the only source of blood drainage from the eyes, and so, if a thrombus forms in this vessel, ocular oedema and permanent damage or even loss of the eye may occur.The lateral tail veins may be used. Arguments for and against cat laws; What licensing requirements are needed by cat and dog owners in Chicago, Illinois; Who are protected by the cat leash laws. As much of the scruff should then be grasped as possible, with the pull in a cranial direction, to ensure that the skin is not drawn tight around the eyes (hamsters have a tendency to proptose their eyes if roughly scruffed) (Gerbils are relatively docile, but can jump extremely well when frightened and may bite. Dogs Most dogs are well … More often, ketamine is combined with other drugs such as the alpha-2 agonists xylazine and medetomidine. This allows a smooth induction.This gas anaesthetic is used commonly in small mammals now, and has an advantage over isoflurane in that breath-holding, when it is used as an induction agent is much reduced, particularly in rabbits.