Dopamine and dobutamine may be ineffective at managing hypotension in anaesthetised koalas ( Phascolarctos cinereus )

Managing hypotension during anaesthesia is a common challenge in all species for which there are numerous approaches. To the authors’ knowledge, managing hypotension in the anaesthetised koala has never been described. This case report details two separate koalas, anaesthetised for different reasons, who developed hypotension under anaesthesia. In one koala, hypotension was managed primarily through the administration of inotropic infusions. Hypotension in the other koala was managed primarily through the administration of an infusion of phenylephrine. The phenylephrine successfully improved the mean arterial pressure, while the inotropes appeared to be completely ineffective.