ANESTHESIA AND SURGERY PROTOCOLS FOR INTRA-ABDOMINAL TRANSMITTER PLACEMENT IN FOUR SPECIES OF WILD ARMADILLO

The anatomy and physiology of armadillos make anesthetic procedures and the placement of telemetry devices challenging. From June 2011 to November 2019, a total of 73 free-living armadillos were captured and anesthetized in the Pantanal, Brazil. Giant (Priodontes maximus), six-banded (Euphractus sexcinctus), southern naked-tailed (Cabassous unicinctus), and nine-banded (Dasypus novemcinctus) armadillos were divided into two groups. In group 1, 30 armadillos were anesthetized for collection of biological samples, body measurements, and placement of a microchip tag. Anesthetic combination BDM was applied: butorphanol tartrate, detomidine hydrochloride, and midazolam hydrochloride, each at 0.1 mg/kg. In group 2, 43 armadillos received ketamine hydrochloride at 10 mg/kg 20 min after BDM injection, and intra-abdominal radio transmitters were surgically implanted. The transmitter was inserted freely into the abdominal cavity. Vital signs were monitored during anesthesia every 10 min and varied within species and between groups. Rectal temperature varied from 33.1 ± 1.36 to 35.34 ± 1.21°C, heart rate (beats/min) from 19 ± 2.14 to 84.71 ± 9.25, respiratory rate (breaths/min) from 11 ± 4.16 to 31 ± 2.82, and oxygen saturation values (SPO2%) from 84.17% ± 2.39 to 98% ± 1.20. Both groups received the antagonist combination NYF: naloxone hydrochloride (0.02 mg/kg), yohimbine hydrochloride (0.125 mg/kg), and flumazenil (0.01 mg/kg). Recovery varied according to intravenous or intramuscular injection from 2 ± 4 to 8.08 ± 2.93 min respectively. BDM protocol was considered satisfactory and provided enough time to complete the procedures (60 ± 85 to 133.20 ± 9.12 min) according to the species and group. Ketamine added to the BDM provided enough time and a surgical plane of anesthesia (97 ± 22 to 137 ± 39.5 min). The surgical procedure technique chosen did not appear to have a negative impact on armadillos studied. Implantable transmitters provide a cost-effective method for long-term monitoring of wild individuals.