As ketamine has become more popular, an increasing number of drugs are being misrepresented and sold as ketamine. These include ketamine analogs (drugs that are chemically similar, but unique), PCP analogs, other novel dissociatives, and sometimes drugs with completely different effects. These substances all have different durations, dosages, and risk profiles.

Note: Mandelin reagent has been used to test ketamine in the past, but it is often inconsistent and can produce similar reactions with many other drugs. We no longer recommend using Mandelin reagent to test ketamine.

Read our “reagent drug checking instructions” page FIRST to learn how to test correctly. Our full instruction pamphlet is also included as a physical copy with your order.

Note: After putting the first drop (bottle A) onto your sample, you may see blue specks appear. Ignore these; many substances turn blue after the first drop. You’ll only see the final color after putting a drop of B on the sample too, and then stirring the mixture for 30 seconds.

Note: Although still very rare, we have confirmed a handful of cases of ketamine being contaminated with fentanyl. The drug market can change rapidly and it’s unclear whether this will become more common. Whenever possible, use our fentanyl test strips to test your ketamine taking it.

Most reagents contain acids that break down the molecules in a drug sample through a chemical reaction, dissolving the drug entirely and producing a color change almost immediately. Morris reagent is different because it simply comes in contact with the molecules and changes colors if those molecules belong to specific drugs (like ketamine).

This is why you need to stir the mixture after you’ve put one drop of both Morris A and Morris B onto the sample. Stirring mixes the two solutions together so you can see the proper and final color. Use a toothpick or the point of a sharp knife, and stir thoroughly for a full 30 seconds.

When you drop Morris A (the pink liquid) onto your sample, you may see specks of blue appear, as in the above photo on the right. Ignore this – many substances will do this. Only after 1) adding a drop from the second bottle (Morris B) and 2) stirring for 30 seconds will you see the proper and final color.

Caution: At least one company sells a version of Morris reagent that’s primarily marketed to law enforcement, and their product consists of small ampules that you break open inside a clear, plastic pouch. This method does not work. It does not reveal enough color detail to distinguish between various drugs, and can often produce false positives. Do not use a test tube. You must use a white plate (ideally ceramic or hard plastic) as your testing surface and stir the mixture as described above.

Although we tested dozens of drugs with Morris reagent and none of them reacted like ketamine – most didn’t react at all – there may be some drugs we haven’t tested that do turn purple, or that produce a unique color of their own. If you discover a drug that reacts with Morris reagent (that does not turn dull green), please email a photo of the reaction to eman@dancesafe.org.

We tested the following novel dissociatives and only two of them, deschloroketamine (DCK) and 2-fluoro-deschloroketamine (2-FDCK), reacted at all. They both turned a dark blue/gray color. All the others turned dull green, indicating a non-reaction. The following dissociatives are non-reactive:

• phencyclidine (PCP)
• deschloro-n-ethyl-ketamine (2-OXO-PCE)
• 3-methoxy-PCP (3-MeO-PCP)
• 3-chloro-PCP (3-Cl-PCP)
• 3-methoxy-PCE (3-MeO-PCE)
• 2-oxo-PCE (O-PCE)
• methoxpropamine (MXPr)
• methoxetamine (MXE)
• ephenidine (EPE)
• diphenidine (DPD)

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