Perioperative supportive care and monitoring.

Supportive care minimizes the adverse physiologic effects of anesthesia, surgery, and preexisting disease. Monitoring detects physiologic perturbations, ensures appropriate anesthetic depth, and assesses the efficacy of supportive care. The principles of monitoring and supportive care are similar in small exotic species; however, an understanding of comparative anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology is necessary to apply these principles.