Saved Ukrainian Lioness Receives Essential Dental Operation
A Wildlife Rescue Center
An adolescent female lion rescued from war-torn the war zone has received critical dental surgery to extract a severely infected canine tooth caused by an infection.
Lira was brought to a wildlife sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on March 14 after a campaign by director the sanctuary's leader, who raised £500,000 to fund her and several other lions from Ukraine.
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 right away the damaged fang was highly inflamed," said Mr Kertesz.
He believed the dental issue was caused by a injury experienced more than a year ago, leading to germs producing harmful substances within the fang.
"The approach I follow is animal oral health issues need to be treated in the safest, the least invasive and most secure manner," he said.
The expert clarified that as Lira no longer required to hunt for food, extraction was the most "sensible and ethical solution."
The Animal Rescue Facility
The rescue center said the removed fang was 8cm (3.14 inches) long, with Mr Kertesz having to extract a pocket of pus from beneath the tooth and seal the large wound with multiple absorbable stitches.
He additionally conducted a dental procedure on the opposing upper canine tooth, which was discovered to have a similar issue.
The curator, manager at the facility, declared the operation was a "total triumph."
She said the team had observed "a minor swelling on the lioness's face" but it had been difficult to determine "how serious the condition was."
"Lira will be a little uncomfortable to begin with, but now that the infectious materials are removed from her system, she will begin improving over the coming days," added the curator.
The successful surgery represents a significant step in the lioness's healing process after her rescue from Ukraine.
