Twenty-seven hand-reared male Arabian oryx (Oryx leucoryx), with a mean (±SD) weight of 86.9 (±16.9) kg, were darted in the muscle with xylazine at a mean (±SD) dosage rate of 0.5 (±0.07) mg/kg. This dosage was sufficient to induce recumbency in 24 animals in a mean (±SD) time of 9.4 (±5.6) min. Three animals never became recumbent at this dosage but were mildly sedated and still could be handled. Atipamezole was used as antagonist agent in a mean (±SD) time of 32.1 (±9.6) min after the initial injection of xylazine. Two thirds of the total amount of atipamezole was given intravenously while one third was injected subcutaneously at a mean (±SD) total dosage of 0.087 (±0.014) mg/kg. The mean (±SD) reversal time (time to stand up after the injection of atipamezole) was 87.1 (±43.2) sec for the 24 recumbent oryx. A resedation period (lowering of the ears and the head, unsteady gait and sometimes recumbency), lasting up to two hours, occurred between two and five hours after the injection of atipamezole in 21 animals.