Wildlife emergencies (e.g. injured animals) often require capture or humane dispatch of animals to resolve the situation. Conducted electrical weapons (CEWs) have the potential to immobilise white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) for a short duration to avoid potential risks of extended immobilisation (e.g. chemical immobilisation) and increase safety for managers and the public during humane killing by gunshot.

To test rapid immobilisation with minimal long-term physiological consequences of CEW immobilisation of white-tailed deer.

We arranged five treatment groups of captive deer, including (1) chemical immobilisation with 5-s CEW exposure (n = 5), (2) chemical immobilisation with 15-s CEW exposure (n = 5), (3) 5-s CEW exposure with no chemical immobilisation (n = 10), (4) 15-s CEW exposure with no chemical immobilisation (n = 10) and (5) a control group with no chemical immobilisation or CEW exposure (n = 10). We conducted treatments 1 and 2 to determine short-term physiological effects of CEWs on deer, related to overall welfare. In treatment groups 1 and 2, we sedated deer to collect blood immediately before CEW exposure, and 2 days and 5 days post-exposure for serum biochemical analysis (to measure physiological markers of organ and tissue damage). We observed deer before, during and after treatments to evaluate potential behavioural changes.

All deer showed signs of muscle paralysis immediately after exposure to CEW and regained muscle control immediately after the exposure ended. Serum biochemistry results for treatment group 1 and 2 revealed significant increases in creatine kinase (CK) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) 2 days post-treatment, before returning to pre-exposure concentrations by day 5-post-exposure, suggesting temporary myopathy. By 15-days post-exposure, deer that were only exposed to the CEW had 27 of 39 (69%) remotely fired probes still attached. No long-term behavioural or physiological changes were observed post-treatment.

Our findings suggest that for immobilisation of white-tailed deer, short-term exposure to a CEW to is a potential alternative to typical capture techniques and can provide sufficient immobilisation to approach and humanely kill deer by gunshot if necessary in wildlife emergencies.

As with all capture techniques, trainings and protocols should be developed to ensure the safety of personnel and animals during CEW exposures.

野生动物紧急情况（例如受伤的动物）通常需要捕获或人道地派遣动物来解决问题。传导电子武器 (CEW) 有可能在短时间内使白尾鹿 ( Odocoileus virginianus ) 无法动弹，以避免长时间无法动弹（例如化学弹射）的潜在风险，并在人道枪杀期间提高管理人员和公众的安全。

测试白尾鹿 CEW 固定的快速固定，且长期生理影响最小。

我们安排了五个圈养鹿处理组，包括（1）化学固定5秒CEW暴露（n  = 5），（2）化学固定15秒CEW暴露（n  = 5），（3）5秒CEW暴露无化学固定的 CEW 暴露 ( n  = 10)、(4) 无化学固定的 15 秒 CEW 暴露 ( n  = 10) 和 (5) 无化学固定或 CEW 暴露的对照组 ( n  = 10)。我们进行了治疗 1 和 2，以确定 CEW 对鹿的短期生理影响（与整体福利相关）。在治疗组 1 和 2 中，我们在 CEW 暴露前、暴露后 2 天和 5 天对鹿进行镇静以收集血液，进行血清生化分析（以测量器官和组织损伤的生理标志物）。我们在治疗前、治疗期间和治疗后观察了鹿，以评估潜在的行为变化。

所有鹿在暴露于CEW后立即表现出肌肉麻痹的迹象，并在暴露结束后立即恢复肌肉控制。治疗组 1 和 2 的血清生化结果显示，治疗后 2 天肌酸激酶 (CK) 和天冬氨酸转氨酶 (AST) 显着增加，然后在暴露后第 5 天恢复到暴露前浓度，表明存在暂时性肌病。到暴露后 15 天，仅暴露于 CEW 的鹿的 39 个远程发射探针中，有 27 个 (69%) 仍然附着。治疗后未观察到长期行为或生理变化。

我们的研究结果表明，对于白尾鹿的固定，短期暴露于CEW是典型捕获技术的潜在替代方案，并且可以提供足够的固定，以便在野生动物紧急情况下必要时接近并人道地枪杀鹿。

与所有捕获技术一样，应制定培训和方案以确保人员和动物在 CEW 暴露期间的安全。