The present experiments were designed to determine the efficacy of metomidate hydrochloride as
an alternative anesthetic with potential cortisol blocking properties for channel catfish Ictalurus
punctatus. Channel catfish (75 g) were exposed to concentrations of metomidate ranging from 0.5 to
16 ppm for a period of 60 min. At 16-ppm metomidate, mortality occurred in 65% of the catfish. No
mortalities were observed at concentrations of 8 ppm or less. The minimum concentration of
metomidate producing desirable anesthetic properties was 6 ppm. At this concentration, acceptable
induction and recovery times were observed in catfish ranging from 3 to 810 g average body weight.
Plasma cortisol levels during metomidate anesthesia (6 ppm) were compared to fish anesthetized
with tricaine methanesulfonate (100 ppm), quinaldine (30 ppm) and clove oil (100 ppm). Cortisol
levels of catfish treated with metomidate and clove oil remained at baseline levels during 30 min of
anesthesia ( P>0.05). Plasma cortisol levels of tricaine methanesulfonate and quinaldine anesthetized
catfish peaked approximately eight- and fourfold higher ( P < 0.05), respectively, than fish treated
with metomidate. These results suggest that the physiological disturbance of channel catfish during
routine-handling procedures and stress-related research could be reduced through the use of
metomidate as an anesthetic.