1. Dosage
Horses
Intravenous --- 0.5 mL/100 lb body weight (0.5 mg/lb or 1.1 mg/kg).
Intramuscular --- 1.0 mL/100 lb body weight (1 mg/lb or 2.2 mg/kg).
Cervidae
Administer intramuscularly, by either hand syringe or syringe dart, in the heavy muscles of the croup or shoulder.
Fallow Deer (Dama dama) --- 2.0 to 4.0 mL/100 lbs body weight (2.0 to 4.0 mg/lb or 4.4 to 8.8 mg/kg).
Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus) --- 1.0 to 2.0 mL/100 lbs body weight (1.0 to 2.0 mg/lb or 2.2 to 4.4 mg/kg).
White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) --- 1.0 to 2.0 mL/100 lbs body weight (1.0 to 2.0 mg/lb or 2.2 to 4.4 mg/kg).
Elk (Cervus canadensis) --- 0.25 to 0.5 mL/100 lbs body weight (0.25 to 0.5 mg/lb or 0.55 to 1.1 mg/kg).
Following injection of xylazine, the animal should be allowed to rest quietly until the full effect has been reached.
These dosages produce sedation which is usually maintained for 1 to 2 hours, and analgesia which lasts for 15 to 30 minutes.
2. Preanesthetic to Local Anesthesia
Xylazine at the recommended dosages can be used in conjunction with local anesthetics, such as procaine or lidocaine.
3. Preanesthetic to General Anesthesia
Xylazine at the recommended dosage rates produces an additive effect to central nervous system depressants such as pentobarbital sodium, thiopental sodium and thiamylal sodium. Therefore, the dosage of such compounds should be reduced and administered to the desired effect. In general, only 1/3 to 1/2 of the calculated dosage of the barbiturates will be needed to produce a surgical plane of anesthesia. Post-anesthetic or emergence excitement has not been observed in animals preanesthetized with xylazine.
Xylazine has been used successfully as a preanesthetic agent for pentobarbital sodium, thiopental sodium, thiamylal sodium, nitrous oxide, ether, halothane, glyceryl guaiacolate and methoxyflurane anesthesia.