Surgical implantation of radio transmitters in arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) on Svalbard, Norway.

Twelve captive wild-caught adult arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) were anesthetized a total of 24 times for an equal number of surgical procedures involving implantation of heart rate (HR) and core body temperature transmitters (Tb) between October 1995 and April 1997. Xylazine-ketamine and medetomidine-ketamine anesthesia was used, resulting in an unacceptably high death rate. One out of four foxes anesthetized with xylazine-ketamine died, whereas two of nine foxes anesthetized with medetomidine-ketamine died out of a total of 20 surgical procedures. Durations of the surgeries for implantation of Tb transmitters and HR transmitters were 73 +/- 7 min and 95 +/- 13 min, respectively.