Which animals are more susceptible to hypothermia while under anesthesia?

• A. Rodents
• B. Rabbits
• C. Nonhuman primates
• D. Amphibians

Answer: (A)

During anesthesia, the body's ability to regulate temperature is suppressed and heat production drops, while heat loss continues. Rodents are especially vulnerable because they are very small and have a high surface-area-to-volume ratio, so they shed heat to the surrounding environment quickly. Anesthetic drugs also blunt shivering and other heat-generating responses, so their temperature can fall rapidly. This combination makes rodents more susceptible to hypothermia than larger or better-insulated animals. Rabbits, though small, have more body mass and fur, providing some insulation that slows heat loss. Nonhuman primates maintain thermoregulation well and are usually kept in controlled environments, reducing risk. Amphibians are ectothermic, so their body temperature largely mirrors the environment, but the specific risk under anesthesia is different and often less about rapid cooling than about maintaining appropriate ambient conditions.