Abstract
Biotelemetry requires animal captures to deploy collars. Capture raises ethical concerns, as field chemical immobilizations are complex procedures, during which respiratory and metabolic disturbances frequently occur, which can disrupt cardiovascular, neurologic, and respiratory function. The use of tools and techniques to maximize animal safety and maintain physiological stability in anesthetized primates is crucial. We examined the use of blood gas and electrolyte analysis to enhance basic anesthesia monitoring in a field setting. We provide preliminary values for venous blood gas and electrolyte parameters (pH, partial pressure of CO2, base excess, bicarbonate, total CO2, sodium, potassium, ionized calcium, glucose, hematocrit, and hemoglobin) obtained using the iSTAT-1 analyzer and iSTAT CG8+ cartridges from 23 olive baboons (Papio anubis) captured in July 14–18, 2019, at Mpala Research Centre in Laikipia County, Kenya. We also tested for age and sex differences in the blood gas and electrolyte values. The reference values showed that some of the olive baboons experienced metabolic alkalosis with respiratory compensation, presumably as a result of chloride depletion through sweat from the high ambient temperatures. None of the measures showed significant variation by age or sex. We recommend providing shaded baited cage traps during capture to minimize risk of hyperthermia. Our findings suggest that rapid provision of blood gas and electrolyte parameters in a field setting augments basic anesthetic monitoring and translates to improved anesthetic protocols and safety of immobilized primates.
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Acknowledgments
The authors thank the Kenya Wildlife Service and Mpala Research Centre for approvals to conduct the study. We thank D. Martins and the staff at Mpala Research Centre for logistical assistance. We also thank Carter Loftus, Shauhin Alavi, and Agrey Masiva for their assistance in the baboon captures. We acknowledge Rebecca Stites, Sharon Mulindi, Nashipai Seketeti, and Peter Ombewa for their assistance in anesthesia monitoring and sample collection. Participation and One Health training of University of Nairobi students Sharon Mulindi and Peter Ombewa was supported by the US Agency for International Development Emerging Pandemic Threats PREDICT Project (Cooperative Agreement No. AID-OAA-A-14-00102). Generous core support for the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute’s Global Health Program’s training program is provided by Morris Animal Foundation and Dennis and Connie Keller. RH and MCC were supported by an NSF grant (IIS 1514174). MCC received additional support from a Packard Foundation Fellowship (2016-65130) and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in the framework of the Alexander von Humboldt Professorship endowed by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research awarded to MCC. AMO was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant No. 19H03312. Prof. Joanna Setchell and two anonymous reviewers provided valuable feedback on a previous version of this manuscript.
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AM-O and RH habituated the baboons for ecological study and baited the cage traps; MC and SM formulated the idea; MWK, JMH, ELM, MMM, RH, and JHY conducted the fieldwork; LH and MWK analyzed the data; MWK, JMH, LH, and ELM wrote the manuscript and the other coauthors provided editorial advice.
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Handling Editor: Joanna M. Setchell.
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Kamau, M.W., Hassell, J.M., Milnes, E.L. et al. Point of Care Blood Gas and Electrolyte Analysis in Anesthetized Olive Baboons (Papio anubis) in a Field Setting. Int J Primatol 42, 667–681 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-021-00241-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-021-00241-3