Comparative pharmacokinetic studies on oxytetracycline in camels,sheep and goats

Kinetics of long acting oxytetracycline (OTC) injected intravenously(IV) at a dose of 5 mg/kg was determined in each of eight camels, sheepand goats. The disposition of OTC was described by two compartmentopen model. Two elimination half-lives were recorded for the camel (81min and 46.1 h), whereas in sheep and goats these were 3.2 and 3.4 h,respectively. The peak plasma concentration was 10.2, 850 and 780mug/ml at 5 minutes in camel, sheep and goats, respectively. The valuesof volume of distribution were 1.4, 13.4 and 12.1 liter/kg for the camels,sheep and goats, respectively. In sheep and goats, values of t1/2, Vdand clearance were found similar but different from camel, indicatingexclusive distribution and substantial storage which were consistent withoxytetracycline lipophilicity and the large fat content of camel body.