Ketorolac is a non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drug administered as an analgesic in humans. It has analgesic effects comparable to opioids but without adverse effects such as respiratory depression or restrictions because of controlled drug status. We designed this study to examine the potential of ketorolac as an analgesic for sea turtle rehabilitative medicine. Our objective was to determine the pharmacokinetics of a single 0.25 mg/kg intramuscular dose of ketorolac in a population of 16 captive‐raised juvenile loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta). A sparse sampling protocol was utilized, and blood samples were collected for 12 hours after administration of ketorolac. Samples were analyzed with high‐pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC), and a nonlinear mixed effects model (NLME) was used to determine parameters for the population. With these methods, we identified a long elimination half‐life (βT1/2 = 11.867 hr) but a low maximum concentration (CMAX = 0.508 µg/mL) and concentrations were below the level proposed to be therapeutic in humans (EC50 = 0.1–0.3 μg/mL) for most of the collection period. We conclude that ketorolac may not be an appropriate long‐term analgesic for use in loggerhead sea turtles at this dose; however, it may have some benefit as a short‐term analgesic.
Insects are commonly utilized in biomedical research and have become increasingly popular in museum collections and as pets. Despite this, objective evaluation of insect euthanasia is scarce. This study investigated the effectiveness of targeted injections of ivermectin or potassium chloride (KCl) for the euthanasia of anesthetized thorny devil stick insects (Eurycantha calcarata). Ten clinically healthy mature insects (six males, four females) were enrolled. Insects were weighed and anesthetized via exposure to a cotton ball soaked with 1.6 mL of liquid isoflurane in a 1 L sealed chamber until loss of righting reflex and response to stimulation (induction). Insects then received one of three treatments: ivermectin 100 mg/kg (n = 4), KCl 200 mEq/kg (n = 4), or 0.9% sodium chloride 100 mL/kg (n = 2) injected along the ventral thoracic midline between the first leg plate and the caudal adjacent plate. Following injection, insects were serially monitored for return of spontaneous movement and righting reflex. Death was defined as the absence of spontaneous movement for 48 h. Median (range) induction time and isoflurane concentration at induction was 36 (22–39) min (n = 9) and 22 (19–22)%, respectively. Euthanasia was successful in 4/4, 3/4, and 0/2 isoflurane-anesthetized insects receiving ivermectin, KCl, or 0.9% sodium chloride, respectively. Recovery was prolonged at 10.5 (sodium chloride female), 11.0 (KCl male), and 18.0 (sodium chloride male) hours. This is the first prospective investigation of euthanasia in adult E. calcarata. In this preliminary study, ivermectin 100 mg/kg via ventral midline injection was effective for euthanasia of thorny devil stick insects.
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