Saved from Ukraine Lioness Undergoes Critical Dental Operation
A Wildlife Rescue Center
An adolescent lioness rescued from war-torn the war zone has received critical oral operation to extract a severely infected canine tooth caused by an abscess.
The lioness arrived at a wildlife sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on 14 March following a campaign by director Cam Whitnall, who collected ÂŁ500,000 to fund her and four other rescued lions.
The Rescue Center
The procedure was carried out on last week by veterinary dentist Peter Kertesz, who has cared for hundreds of large felines.
"Upon inspecting Lira's jaw and mouth, I could see immediately the damaged fang was highly inflamed," said the dentist.
He thought the infection was caused by a trauma experienced more than a year ago, causing germs producing harmful substances inside the tooth.
"My philosophy is non-human dental problems need to be treated in the most predictable, the least invasive and safest way," he explained.
Mr Kertesz clarified that as the lioness did not need to hunt for food, removal was the most "sensible and ethical solution."
The Big Cat Sanctuary
The sanctuary reported the extracted tooth was 3.14 inches in length, with Mr Kertesz having to remove a pocket of pus from beneath the tooth and close the significant opening with multiple absorbable stitches.
He also performed a dental procedure on the opposing upper canine tooth, which was also found to be infected.
Briony Smith, manager at The Big Cat Sanctuary, declared the procedure was a "total triumph."
She said the team had spotted "a small lump on Lira's jawline" but it had been impossible to determine "the extent of the problem."
"The lioness will be somewhat sore to begin with, but now that the infectious materials are out of her body, she will start to feel much better over the next few days," commented the curator.
The successful surgery marks a major milestone in Lira's recovery after her arrival from the conflict area.
