Effects of medetomidine and thiopentone anaesthesia on the haematological and some serum biochemical changes in donkeys (<i>Equus asinus</i>) in Maiduguri, Nigeria

Abstract

The effects of combination of medetomidine and thiopentone intravenous (IV) anaesthesia on haematological and some serum biochemical parameters in donkeys was investigated. A total of 5 donkeys, comprising of 3 females and 2 males with mean body weight (159 ± 16.63 kg) and age (3.45 ± 0.50 years) were used for the present study. Each donkey was given a recommended dose of medetomidine at 5µg /kg and 10 % thiopentone at 7mg/kg body weight IV. Preanaesthetic blood samples were collected and later at 15minutes interval during anaesthesia in EDTA bottles for haematological and biochemical analysis. The parameters evaluated were packed cell volume (PCV), haemoglobin concentration (Hb), red blood cells (RBC), white blood cells (WBC), and differential leucocytes (neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, lymphocytes and monocytes) as well as serum biochemical parameters of alanine amino transferase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and Creatinine (Crea). The medetomidine-Thiopentone combination produced no significant difference (P>0.05) in all the haematological and serum biochemical parameters measured.