Kobus Hoffman, [23 Oct 2023 at 07:54:00]: Anyone have advice on drug doses for male and female lion darting out of a helicopter? Erik Verrynne, [23 Oct 2023 at 11:03:36]: Male 200 mg Zoletil and 6 mg medetomidine. Female 120 mg Zoletil + 4 mg medetomidine. Watch out for the downdraft and ground effect when the lions are static and the chopper is too low - it causes havoc with your darts in the last 2 meters Mark the spot where you dart them. They often disappear into thickets after darting and you may have to search on foot, which is a lonely business with few else keen to assist. The combination is stable for at least an hour and I have not been eaten so far. Hugo Pereira, [23 Oct 2023 at 11:41:30 (23 Oct 2023 at 23:03:14)]: Hi Kobus I use a Zoletil + medetomidine combination when working from the helicopter For females 100mg Zoletil and 6-7mg medetomidine For males 120mg Zoletil and 7-8 mg medetomidine The average down time is 10 min, but in some cases it can go up to 20 min, even with good dart placement It's important to not approach too quickly either. I normally wait another 5-10 min after the animal is down to approach Hope this helps
