🔗 Share this article

The Big Cat Sanctuary

An adolescent female lion rescued from war-torn Ukraine has received vital dental surgery to extract a badly decayed fang resulting from an infection.

Lira was brought to a wildlife sanctuary in Kent, England on March 14 after a campaign by director the sanctuary's leader, who collected £500,000 to fund her and several other lions from Ukraine.

The Big Cat Sanctuary

The procedure was carried out on last week by veterinary dentist Peter Kertesz, who has treated about 450 big cats.

"When I examined Lira's jaw and mouth, I could see immediately the damaged fang was highly inflamed," stated Mr Kertesz.

He believed the infection was due to a trauma experienced more than a year ago, causing germs producing toxins inside the tooth.

"The approach I follow is non-human dental problems should be addressed in the most predictable, the most conservative and most secure manner," he said.

Mr Kertesz clarified that as Lira no longer required to catch prey, removal was the most "sensible and ethical solution."

The Big Cat Sanctuary

The rescue center reported the removed fang was 8cm (3.14 inches) long, with Mr Kertesz having to extract a pocket of pus from under the fang and close the significant opening with seven dissolving sutures.

He also performed a dental procedure on the opposing upper canine tooth, which was discovered to have a similar issue.

The curator, manager at The Big Cat Sanctuary, said the operation was a "total triumph."

She said the team had spotted "a small lump on the lioness's face" but it had been impossible to determine "the extent of the problem."

"The lioness will be a little uncomfortable to initially, but now that the infectious materials are removed from her system, she will start to feel much better over the coming days," added Ms Smith.

The successful surgery represents a major milestone in the lioness's healing process after her arrival from the conflict area.