Dangerous animal tranquilizer found in 2 drug samples tested in Regina

A drug testing site in Regina said it has found at least two instances of fentanyl cut with other possibly lethal substances in recent samples, including xylazine — a legal drug used to sedate large animals. 

The Nēwo-Yōtina Friendship Centre's drug testing site found xylazine in a substance that police say they believe was sold as fentanyl. That prompted Regina police to issue a public safety alert to residents about the effects of consuming illicit drugs.

"It is believed this substance originated from a larger batch, which is likely to be circulating in Regina," the alert said, adding that xylazine mixed with fentanyl presents a heightened risk of overdose and death.

The drug testing site had first come across xylazine in a sample this summer before it discovered xylazine in two more samples during the last couple weeks, said the centre's harm reduction manager Emile Gariepy. 

Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario made up for nearly all (96.66 per cent) of identified xylazine substances in Canada last year, according to Health Canada's drug analysis service.

The report said it had found just one case of xylazine from 2012 to 2020 in Saskatchewan. However, in the last two years of 2021 and 2022, that number had gone up by 11. Overall, in Canada, the number of xylazine identifications went up from five in 2018 to 1,350 in 2022.

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A dangerous animal tranquillizer called xylazine is increasingly finding its way into the illegal drug supply, Health Canada data shows. The drug can cause serious side effects and is resistant to naloxone, the fast-acting medication that can reverse opioid overdoses.

Gariepy said the increasing number of cases of fentanyl cut with xylazine could possibly be motivated by the idea that the tranquilizer is supposed to prolong the effects of fentanyl. 

"Unfortunately, a lot of people who are putting this inside of the drugs aren't sure how much to put in. They are either putting too much fentanyl or too much xylazine or vice-versa," he said. 

From 2012 to 2022, xylazine that included fentanyl was found in 93 per cent of xylazine samples from across the country. Gariepy said the discovery of xylazine is particularly concerning because naloxone, the rapid treatment kit for opioid overdoses, doesn't work for xylazine. 

"[Concerns with xylazine are] EMS or the police trying to get somebody back with naloxone and it not working. We'll be seeing a lot more rises in deaths, and a lot more rises in overdoses as well too," Gariepy said. "It will just be more of a challenge to try to save people's lives."

Gariepy said that in most fentanyl samples, they typically find sugar and caffeine. In the purple-coloured sample from last week, Gariepy said, they found 15 to 20 per cent xylazine and 10 to 15 per cent fentanyl. 

However, in what Gariepy described as a pink-coloured sample from this week, they also found an additional substance along with xylazine and fentanyl —- benzodiazepine. He said this combination is "a little bit more on the dangerous side." 

"Both of these samples are definitely at high risk of lethal overdoses for potentially anybody using it, if they are chronic users or light users," Gariepy said.

The Regina police did not mention benzodiazepine in their alert, and told CBC News they didn't have information on the discovery of benzodiazepine yet.

Gariepy said he encourages users to get substances tested for xylazine or any other dangerous cuts. The testing at the friendship centre is free and in a "no-judgement zone."