• Nasser Vesal and Mohammad H Eskandari.
• Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Shiraz University, Shiraz, 71345-1731 Iran.
• J. Am. Vet. Med. Assoc. 2006 Feb 1;228(3):383-8.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the effects of intranasal administration of midazolam and xylazine (with or without ketamine) and detomidine and their specific antagonists in parakeets.DesignProspective study.Animals17 healthy adult Ring-necked Parakeets (Psittacula krameri) of both sexes (mean weight, 128.83+/-10.46 g [0.28+/-0.02 lb]).ProcedureThe dose of each drug or ketamine-drug combination administered intranasally that resulted in adequate sedation (ie, unrestrained dorsal recumbency maintained for >or=5 minutes) was determined; the onset of action, duration of dorsal recumbency, and duration of sedation associated with these treatments were evaluated. The efficacy of the reversal agents flumazenil, yohimbine, and atipamezole was also evaluated.ResultsIn parakeets, intranasal administration of midazolam (7.3 mg/kg [3.32 mg/lb]) or detomidine (12 mg/kg [5.45 mg/lb]) caused adequate sedation within 2.7 and 3.5 minutes, respectively. Combinations of midazolam (3.65 mg/kg [1.66 mg/lb]) and xylazine (10 mg/kg [4.55 mg/lb]) with ketamine (40 to 50 mg/kg [18.2 to 22.7 mg/lb]) also achieved adequate sedation. Compared with detomidine, duration of dorsal recumbency was significantly longer with midazolam. Intranasal administration of flumazenil (0.13 mg/kg [0.06 mg/lb]) significantly decreased midazolam-associated recumbency time. Compared with the xylazineketamine combination, duration of dorsal recumbency was longer after midazolam-ketamine administration. Intranasal administration of flumazenil, yohimbine, or atipamezole significantly decreased the duration of sedation induced by midazolam, xylazine, or detomidine, respectively.Conclusions And Clinical RelevanceIntranasal administration of sedative drugs appears to be an acceptable method of drug delivery in Ring-necked Parakeets. Reversal agents are also effective when administered via this route.

38 keywords...

hide…