Sedation and Local Anesthesia as an Alternative to General Anesthesia in 3 Birds

Sedation combined with local anesthesia can provide a safe alternative to general anesthesia or simple manual restraint for a variety of minor surgical procedures in captive birds. The following case reports demonstrate the use and safety of midazolam and butorphanol, along with local lidocaine and bupivacaine for various procedures including mass removal and digit amputation. In each case, sedation allowed restraint with minimal patient stress with the local block appearing to provide adequate analgesia. Each patient experienced an uneventful recovery.