The Big Cat Sanctuary
A three-year-old female lion rescued from war-torn Ukraine has received vital oral operation to extract a badly decayed canine tooth resulting from an infection.
The lioness was brought to The Big Cat Sanctuary in Kent, England on March 14 following a campaign by managing director Cam Whitnall, who raised half a million pounds to support her and several other lions from Ukraine.
The Big Cat Sanctuary
The procedure was carried out on last week by dentist an experienced animal dentist, who has treated about 450 big cats.
"Upon inspecting the lioness's oral cavity, I could see immediately the damaged fang was highly inflamed," stated the dentist.
He believed the dental issue was due to a injury experienced over twelve months back, leading to bacteria creating harmful substances within the fang.
"The approach I follow is animal oral health issues should be addressed in the safest, the most conservative and most secure manner," he said.
The expert explained that as Lira did not need to catch prey, extraction was the most "sensible and ethical solution."
The Big Cat Sanctuary
The rescue center reported the extracted tooth was 3.14 inches in length, with the dentist having to extract a pocket of pus from beneath the tooth and seal the large wound with multiple absorbable stitches.
He additionally conducted a root canal treatment on the opposing upper canine tooth, which was discovered to have a similar issue.
Briony Smith, curator at The Big Cat Sanctuary, said the operation was a "total triumph."
She noted the staff had observed "a minor swelling on Lira's jawline" but it had been impossible to determine "the extent of the problem."
"Lira will be a little uncomfortable to begin with, but now that the toxins are removed from her system, she will start to feel much better over the coming days," added the curator.
The successful surgery marks a major milestone in Lira's recovery after her arrival from the conflict area.
