FREE SHIPPING over $40
OVER 9000 FIVE-STAR REVIEWS
5% OFF ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS
100% HAPPINESS GUARANTEE
Analyze Diet
0
Home / Equine Research Bank / Equine Vet J / Retrospective and prospective assessment of butorphanol, aza...
Equine veterinary journal2021; 54(3); 549-555; doi: 10.1111/evj.13490

Retrospective and prospective assessment of butorphanol, azaperone and medetomidine (BAM™) for immobilisation of feral horses (Equus ferus caballus).

Abstract: Butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine (BAM™) has not been evaluated in horses. Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate BAM™ for chemical restraint of feral horses. Methods: Retrospective and prospective descriptive studies. Methods: Data were collected retrospectively from medical records of 28 feral horses immobilised with BAM™ over a 6-year period. Prospectively, 0.0125 mL/kg bwt of BAM™ (butorphanol 27.3 mg/mL, azaperone 9.1 mg/mL and medetomidine 10.9 mg/mL) intramuscularly (im) was administered to eight stallions via dart, and once recumbent, 1.0 mg/kg bwt ketamine was given intravenously (iv). Induction and recovery time and quality via a standardised rubric (1 = very poor; 5 = excellent) and visual analogue scale (VAS), need for additional darts, weight tape measurement and serial physiological parameters were recorded. Serial arterial blood gas analysis was performed during recumbency. Following castration, horses were given 0.1 mg/kg bwt atipamezole (25% iv and 75% im) and allowed to recover unaided. Results: Retrospectively, 28 horses were successfully immobilised with BAM™ without a major complication. Prospectively, eight horses were given a median (range) actual BAM dose of 0.0143 (0.0127-0.0510) mL/kg bwt. Three of eight horses needed 1, 2 or 5 additional darts. Median (range) time to recumbency was 11 (2-44) minutes. Median (range) induction (n = 4) and recovery (n = 6) scores via rubric and VAS were 5 (4-5) and 5 (5-5) and 92 (86-93) and 98 (92-99) cm, respectively. Four of seven horses were hypoxaemic at ≥1 time point with otherwise acceptable physiological parameters. Following atipamezole, median (range) time to sternal recumbency and standing was 12 (2-18) and 17 (11-52) minutes, respectively (n = 6). Conclusions: The sample size was small. Data could not be collected before darting or after recovery. Some data were missing from retrospective analysis. Conclusions: Intramuscular BAM™ with iv ketamine provided chemical restraint suitable for field castration of feral horses with no mortality. Hypoxaemia occurred in the majority of horses.
© 2021 EVJ Ltd.
Get Full Text
Publication Date: 2021-07-26 PubMed ID: 34145913DOI: 10.1111/evj.13490Google Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
LinkedInCopy
  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The study investigates the effectiveness of a drug combination, BAM™ (butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine), for physically restraining wild horses. It concluded that using BAM™, along with intravenous ketamine, is suitable for temporarily immobilising these horses, such as for castration procedures, despite some instances of low oxygen levels in the blood.

Research Methodology

  • The study was both retrospective and prospective in nature.
  • For the retrospective analysis, the researchers looked at medical records of 28 wild horses that had been restrained using BAM™ over a span of six years.
  • For the prospective analysis, eight stallions were administered with 0.0125 mL/kg body weight of BAM™, intramuscularly through darting. When the horses were lying down, they were given 1.0 mg/kg body weight of ketamine intravenously.
  • The researchers observed and recorded several factors like the time to achieve full sedation and recovery, the need for extra darts, the quality of sedation and recovery, weight tape measurement and various physiological parameters.
  • Once castrated, the horses were administered atipamezole for waking up and were let to recover without assistance.

Key Findings

  • Historical data from 28 treated horses revealed a successful application of BAM™ for immobilisation without serious complications.
  • In the prospective study, it was found that eight horses were effectively sedated with a median BAM™ dose of 0.0143 mL/kg body weight. However, some horses required one, two, or even five additional darts to reach full immobilisation.
  • The median time to sedation was 11 minutes, ranging from 2 to 44 minutes. Sedation and recovery quality were scored excellent in most cases.
  • Four out of seven horses experienced low oxygen levels in the blood at one or more times during the procedure but other physiological parameters remained within an acceptable range.
  • After the administration of atipamezole, the median time for the horses to adopt a sitting position and stand up was 12 and 17 minutes, respectively.

Conclusions and Limitations

  • Given the small sample size, the lack of data before darting, and missing information in retrospective analysis, the research had some limitations.
  • The combination of intramuscular BAM™ and intravenous ketamine was found to provide appropriate chemical restraint for field castration of wild horses, without any fatalities.
  • Low oxygen levels were recorded in the majority of horses, indicating the potential necessity for more extensive post-procedure monitoring or the adjustment of the drug combination in future applications.

Cite This Article

APA
Balko JA, Fogle C, Stuska SJ, Fogle JE, Posner LP. (2021). Retrospective and prospective assessment of butorphanol, azaperone and medetomidine (BAM™) for immobilisation of feral horses (Equus ferus caballus). Equine Vet J, 54(3), 549-555. https://doi.org/10.1111/evj.13490

Publication

Equine veterinary journal
ISSN: 2042-3306
NlmUniqueID: 0173320
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 54
Issue: 3
Pages: 549-555

Researcher Affiliations

Balko, Julie A
  • College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.
Fogle, Callie
  • College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.
Stuska, Susan J
  • Cape Lookout National Seashore, Harkers Island, NC, USA.
Fogle, Jonathan E
  • College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.
Posner, Lysa P
  • College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.

MeSH Terms

  • Animals
  • Azaperone / pharmacology
  • Butorphanol / pharmacology
  • Horses
  • Hypnotics and Sedatives / pharmacology
  • Immobilization / veterinary
  • Ketamine
  • Male
  • Medetomidine / pharmacology
  • Prospective Studies
  • Retrospective Studies

Grant Funding

  • North Carolina State University, College of Veterinary Medicine

References

This article includes 26 references
  1. Walzer C. Nondomestic equids. 2014;p. 719-28.
  2. Matthews NS, Petrini KR, Wolff PL. Anesthesia of Przewalski's horses (Equus przewalskii przewalskii) with medetomidine/ketamine and antagonism with atipamezole. J Zoo Wildl Med 1995;26(2):231-6.
  3. Zabek MA, Wright J, Berman DM, Hampton JO, Collins CW. Assessing the efficacy of medetomidine and tiletamine-zolazepam for remote immobilization of feral horses (Equus caballus). Wildl Res 2014;41:615-22.
  4. Lance WR, Wolfe LL. Pharmaceutical combination for and method of anesthetizing and immobilizing non-domesticated mammals. US patent 7 795 263 B2. Sept 14, 2010.
  5. ZooPharm. BAM. 2020. https://www.zoopharm.com/medication/bam-kit/. Accessed November 11, 2020.
  6. Mich PM, Wolfe LL, Sirochman TM, Sirochman MA, Davis TR, Lance WR. Evaluation of intramuscular butorphanol, azaperone, and medetomidine and nasal oxygen insufflation for the chemical immobilization of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). J Zoo Wildl Med 2008;39(3):480-7.
  7. Miller BF, Osborn DA, Lance WR, Howze MB, Warren RJ, Miller KV. Butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine for immobilization of captive white-tailed deer. J Wildl Dis 2009;45(2):457-67.
  8. Wolfe LL, Goshorn CT, Baruch-Mordo S. Immobilization of black bears (Ursus americanus) with a combination of butorphanol, azaperone, and medetomidine. J Wildl Dis 2008;44(3):748-52.
  9. Williamson RH, Muller LI, Blair CD. The use of ketamine-xylazine or butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine to immobilize American black bears (Ursus americanus). J Wildl Dis 2018;54(3):503-10.
  10. Wolfe LL, Fisher MC, Davis TR, Miller MW. Efficacy of a low-dosage combination of butorphanol, azaperone, and medetomidine (BAM) to immobilize Rocky Mountain elk. J Wildl Dis 2014;50(3):676-80.
  11. Harms NJ, Jung TS, Hallock M, Egli K. Efficacy of a butorphanol, azaperone, and medetomidine combination for helicopter-based immobilization of bison (Bison bison). J Wildl Dis 2018;54(4):819-24.
  12. Hansen CM, Beckmen KB. Butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine for the immobilization of captive caribou (Rangifer tarandus granti) in Alaska, USA. J Wildl Dis 2018;54(3):650-2.
  13. Semjonov A, Andrianov V, Raath JP, Orro T, Laubscher L, Pfitzer S. Evaluation of butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine (BAM) in captive blesbok immobilization (Damaliscus pygargus phillipsi). Vet Anaesth Analg 2018;45(4):496-501.
  14. Watson MK, Thurber M, Chinnadurai SK. Comparison of medetomidine-ketamine and butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine in captive Bennett's wallabies (Macropus rufogriseus). J Zoo Wildl Med 2016;47(4):1019-24.
  15. Lapid R, Shilo-Benjamini Y. Immobilization of captive Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana) with butorphanol-midazolam-medetomidine or butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine and atipamezole reversal. J Zoo Wildl Med 2015;46(2):291-7.
  16. Roug A, Talley H, Davis T, Roueche M, DeBloois D. A mixture of butorphanol, azaperone, and medetomidine for the immobilization of American beavers (Castor canadensis). J Wildl Dis 2018;54(3):617-21.
  17. Semjonov A, Andrianov V, Raath JP, Orro T, Venter D, Laubscher L. Evaluation of BAM (butorphanol-azaperone-medetomidine) in captive African lion (Panthera leo) immobilization. Vet Anaesth Analg 2017;44(4):883-9.
  18. Goodwin WA, Keates HL, Pasloske K, Pearson M, Sauer B, Ranasinghe MG. The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of the injectable anesthetic alfaxalone in the horse. Vet Anaesth Analg 2011;38(5):431-8.
  19. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Centers for Environmental Information, Cedar Island, NC 28520, April 27, 2019. https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdo-web/search Accessed 23 November 2020.
  20. Steffey EP, Mama KR, Brosnan RJ. Inhalation anesthetics. 2015;p. 297-331.
  21. Rankin DC, Greene SA, Keegan RD, Weil AB, Schneider RK, Bayly WM. Anesthesia of horses with a combination of detomidine, zolazepam, tiletamine, and isoflurane immediately after strenuous treadmill exercise. Am J Vet Res 1999;60(6):743-8.
  22. Stemmet GP, Meyer LCR, Bruns A, Buss P, Zimmerman D, Koeppel K. Compared to etorphine-azaperone, the ketamine-butorphanol-medetomidine combination is also effective at immobilizing zebra (Equus zebra). Vet Anaesth Analg 2019;46(4):466-75.
  23. Bettschart-Wolfensberger R. Horses. 2015;p. 857-66.
  24. Coutu P, Caulkett N, Pang D, Boysen S. Efficacy of a portable oxygen concentrator with pulsed delivery for treatment of hypoxaemia during equine field anesthesia. Vet Anaesth Analg 2015;42(5):518-26.
  25. Nyman G, Hedenstierna G. Ventilation-perfusion relationships in the anaesthetised horse. Equine Vet J 1989;21(4):274-81.
  26. West JB, Luks AM. West's respiratory physiology: the essentials. 2016.

Citations

This article has been cited 0 times.
Subscribe to our newsletter
Join 99,344 horse owners like you who receive our email updates on horse health and nutrition.