CHAPTER MENU
Localand RegionalAnalgesia, 800 Lidocaine, 800
Paravertebral Block, 801
Intravenous Regional Analgesia, 801
Caudal Epidural Block, 802
Anterior Epidural Anesthesia, 802
Sacral Paravertebral Alcohol Block, 803
Single and Combination Agents for General Anesthesia, 803 Short-Acting Barbiturates, 803 Other Barbiturates, 804
Xylazine, 804
Ketamine, Ketamine plus Diazepam, 804
Xylazine and Ketamine, 805
Xylazine Congeners, 805
Tiletamine and Zolazepam, 806
Althesin, 806
Propofol, 806
Opioid Immobilization, 806
Halothane, 807
Methoxyflurane, 807
Isoflurane and Other Inhalants, 807
Electroanesthesia, 807
Acupuncture Analgesia, 807
Preanesthetic Considerations and Tranquilization, 808 Intubation, 808
Endotracheal Tube Size, 808
Intubation under Visual Observation, 809
Blind Intubation, 809
Precautions during Anesthesia, 809
Postsurgical Pain Relief, 810
Euthanasia and Slaughter, 811
References, 812
Goats are obviously sensitive to pain and vocalize loudly, sometimes even before being hurt.
Most hobby goat owners prefer paying for tranquilization or anesthesia to observing the distress of a loved animal. In addition, goats seem to be prone to shock or perhaps to catecholamine- induced ventricular fibrillation (Gray and McDonell 1986a). Some die quickly after a surgical experience, and these losses can usually be prevented with adequate analgesia. Finally, in some countries humane laws dictate analgesia for surgical operations.Consideration must be given to withdrawal times when tranquilizers or general anesthetics are given to meat or dairy animals. Because none of the drugs discussed in this chapter is approved for use in goats in the United States, withdrawals should be based on information sup - plied by the Food Animal Residue Avoidance Databank (FARAD) if available.
In most instances, recommendations published for cattle are appropriate for goats, but a 24-hour withdrawal period is recommended to meet the extended withdrawal required for extralabel drug use under the Animal Medicinal Drug Use Clarification Act (AMDUCA), if the cattle withdrawal is zero (Craigmill et al. 1997). See Table 17.1 for some FARAD guidelines for withdrawals in goats, which are also repeated at the FARAD website, http://www.farad.org/wdilookup/wdi_ goats.html.FARAD specifically declined to provide a withdrawal recommendation for tiletamine hydrochloride and zolaze- pam (Craigmill et al. 1997) or acepromazine (Haskell et al. 2003), although it does list the Canadian withdrawal intervals. Recommendations are also lacking for medeto- midine, dexmedetomidine, bupivacaine, morphine, and butorphanol, although FARAD personnel tend to suggest 30 days for such drugs when scientific data is not available.
Intravenous (IV) injections are given easily in the jugular vein (Figure 1.1) of goats. One person can restrain an adult dairy goat by straddling its neck and holding the head to one side with an elbow, leaving both hands free to distend the jugular vein and manipulate a needle and syringe. The
Goat Medicine, Third Edition. Mary C. Smith and David M. Sherman. © 2023 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Published 2023 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Table 17.1 FARAD recommended withdrawal (WD) intervals for tranquilizers and general anesthetics in goats (Craigmill et al. 1997; Haskell etal.2003; Lin 2015).
| Drug | Dose (mg/kg) | MeatWD (d) | Milk WD (h) |
| Acepromazine (Canada) | Up to 0.13 IV; up to 0.44 IM | 7 | 48 |
| Atropine | Adjunct to anesthesia | 7 | 24 |
| Detomidine | Up to 0.08 IM or IV | 3 | 72 |
| Guaifenesin | Up to 100 IV | 3 | 48 |
| Ketamine | Up to 2 IV, 10 IM | 3 | 48 |
| Lidocaine with epinenephrine | Infiltration, epidural | 1 | 24 |
| Tolazoline (cattle) | 2-4 IV | 8 | 48 |
| Ultra-short-acting barbiturates | Thiamylal (up to 5.5) Thialbarbitone (up to 9.4) | 1 | 24 |
| Xylazine | Up to 0.1 IV, 0.3 IM | 5 | 72 |
| Xylazine (cattle) | Up to 0.3 IM | 4 | 24 |
| Yohimbine | Up to 0.3 IV | 7 | 72 |
Additional drugs that lack a FARAD recommendation are listed in Lin (2015).
IM, intramuscular; IV, intravenous.presence of both horns and mohair on Angoras makes venipuncture more difficult and an assistant may be welcome. If a goat is short and squirmy, the operator may choose to lift the animal's front quarters off the ground and hold them clamped between the knees for better restraint during venipuncture. The cephalic vein and the recurrent tarsal vein, also called the lateral saphenous vein, are suitable for placement of butterfly catheters, and some may find 19- or 21-gauge butterfly catheters convenient for rapid administration of drugs via the jugular vein. Any of these vessels are appropriate and technically manageable for catheterization as well.
Additional information on all topics in this chapter is available from recent textbooks of anesthesia or surgery, including Clarke et al. (2014), Riebold (2015), and Boesch and Campoy (2017).