For veterinary professionals
October 2026
Chinchilla anesthesia is something many of us approach with a little extra caution. The patients are small, the airway is narrow, and in dental cases we're sharing the mouth with the procedure. Inhalant anesthesia works well in many cases, but it isn't the only option. I recently published a short case report in Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia describing lidocaine-ketamine-propofol total intravenous anesthesia (LKP-TIVA) in two chinchillas. Here's what was done, the chinchilla analgesia data I lean on, and some options to consider for your own cases.
The two chinchillas weighed about 0.6 kg each and had very different procedures: one an ovariohysterectomy for open pyometra with uterine adenocarcinoma, the other a cheek-tooth extraction. The report also includes the first described case of uterine adenocarcinoma in a chinchilla.
Premedication was buprenorphine, dexmedetomidine, midazolam and ketamine. Induction was with propofol, alongside lidocaine 2 mg/kg and ketamine 1.6 mg/kg. Anesthesia was then maintained entirely by infusion:
| Drug | Infusion rate |
|---|---|
| Lidocaine | 100 µg/kg/min |
| Ketamine | 0.6 mg/kg/h |
| Propofol | 1.6 to 2.0 mg/kg/h |
Both chinchillas were intubated with 2.0 mm endotracheal tubes and breathed spontaneously. For context, those rates sit within published exotic mammal CRI ranges for lidocaine and ketamine (Schnellbacher and Comolli).
Both chinchillas recovered uneventfully, one from abdominal surgery and one from dental surgery. Hypoventilation with mild hypercapnia occurred, which isn't surprising in spontaneously breathing patients on a combined injectable protocol. Hypothermia also occurred, as it so often does in patients this size.
Ketamine's NMDA antagonism helps limit central sensitization and wind-up, and I consider it as a premedication or co-induction agent in most exotic companion mammal cases. In rabbits, an IV lidocaine CRI reduces isoflurane MAC in a dose-dependent way (Schnellbacher et al.), and in a TIVA plan the same logic applies to propofol. Spreading the anesthetic and analgesic load across three drugs at modest rates is a familiar idea from other species.
Chinchilla pharmacology is thin, and that's worth being honest about with families. Chinchillas, like guinea pigs, need considerably higher buprenorphine doses than rabbits. Around 0.2 mg/kg SC, repeated roughly every 6 hours, is supported by efficacy work in this species (Fox and Mans). Hydromorphone at 2 mg/kg SC every 4 hours was needed to change limb-withdrawal responses, along with transient hyporexia and reduced fecal output (Evenson and Mans), so plan nutritional support if you use it.
There are currently no published studies of meloxicam or other clinically relevant NSAIDs in chinchillas. When I use them, it's by extrapolation, with monitoring, and only once the patient is warm and normotensive.
Two cases show the protocol is feasible. They don't show that LKP-TIVA is better than inhalant anesthesia. Still, there are situations we run into where it's worth having in the toolbox.
Dental work is the obvious one. Without a mask or gas circuit near the face, you have more room in the oral cavity, and local dental nerve blocks can further reduce systemic drug needs. Reproductive surgery is another. Reproductive disease is common in female chinchillas, and a recent Tokyo biopsy series found it made up the large majority of chinchilla biopsy cases, mostly endometritis (Ueda et al.).
If you'd like to try something similar, intubate and be ready to ventilate, and use capnography if you have it. Start thermal support at premedication and continue it through recovery. Use reliable small-volume syringe drivers and plan dilutions carefully at this body size, and calculate local anesthetic totals precisely, because toxicity happens more easily in small patients. Then adapt the plan to your patient, procedure and monitoring capability. These were the rates used in two cases, not a fixed recipe.
Kopp L. Lidocaine-ketamine-propofol total intravenous anesthesia in two chinchillas (Chinchilla lanigera). Vet Anaesth Analg. 2026;53(6):101371. doi:10.1016/j.vaa.2026.101371
Ueda M, Shiga T, Miwa Y, et al. A retrospective study (2006-2020) of biopsy cases in pet guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus), degus (Octodon degus) and chinchillas (Chinchilla lanigera) at an exotic animal clinic in Tokyo, Japan. J Comp Pathol. 2026;229:19-26. doi:10.1016/j.jcpa.2026.07.002
Fox L, Mans C. Analgesic efficacy and safety of buprenorphine in chinchillas (Chinchilla lanigera). J Am Assoc Lab Anim Sci. 2018;57(3):286-290.
Evenson EA, Mans C. Analgesic efficacy and safety of hydromorphone in chinchillas (Chinchilla lanigera). J Am Assoc Lab Anim Sci. 2018;57(3):282-285.
Schnellbacher R, Comolli J. Constant rate infusions in exotic animals. J Exot Pet Med. 2020;35:50-57.
Schnellbacher RW, et al. Effects of lidocaine administration via continuous rate infusion on the minimum alveolar concentration of isoflurane in New Zealand White rabbits. Am J Vet Res. 2013;74(11):1377-1384.
If you have questions about setting up a lidocaine-ketamine CRI, planning TIVA for a small patient, or managing a chinchilla dental or reproductive case, reach out to Nashville's chinchilla and exotic companion mammal specialist. Dr. Logan Kopp, DABVP (Exotic Companion Mammal Practice), sees referrals and colleague consults at Priest Lake Veterinary Hospital, (615) 361-4646. Referral details are on the referring veterinarians page.
This content is for educational purposes for veterinary professionals. It doesn't establish a VCPR or replace clinical judgment for an individual patient. Drug use and doses should be checked against current references and adjusted for each case.