A Florida zoo employee was taken to the hospital Friday after possibly being exposed to saliva from an antelope that had been given a powerful opioid during a medical procedure.
The staff member at Zoo Miami—the largest zoological park in Florida—became ill while helping with what the zoo described as a “routine immobilization procedure” to prepare a greater kudu for transfer to another facility, according to a post on Instagram.
Zoo officials have not determined what caused the employee’s symptoms. They said, however, that the antelope received immobilization medications, including thiafentanil, an extremely potent opioid in the fentanyl family.
Thiafentanil, which is an injectable solution, is listed as “not for humans” by the Federal Drug Administration and must be “handled with extreme caution to avoid accidental exposure.”
If exposed to the potent drug, humans may experience dizziness, nausea, respiratory depression and lowered blood pressure — and in the most extreme cases, loss of consciousness and cardiac arrest, the FDA advises.
“Out of an abundance of caution and given the potential for inadvertent dermal exposure to the drug through contact with the animal’s saliva, the employee was administered Narcan and transported to Jackson South Medical Center for further evaluation and observation,” the zoo wrote.
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The animal park confirmed the worker is currently in stable condition but remains under medical observation.
Zoo Miami noted the employee first started experiencing symptoms while they were “helping secure the animal’s head following immobilization, allowing the zoo veterinarian to conduct the necessary tests as part of the animal’s pre-shipment examination.”
It remains unclear how the worker may have inadvertently ingested some of the drugged saliva — but the FDA urges people to “use safe technique by working in pairs, wearing disposable latex gloves, and wearing eye protection” while handling the drug.
Animals at zoos are typically immobilized to perform medical care, transport animals to other facilities, safely conduct diagnostic tests or to manage emergency escapes by either physical restraint or chemical sedation, according to MixLab.
The Post reached out to Zoo Miami for further comment.
