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The Big Cat Sanctuary

An adolescent female lion rescued from war-torn the war zone has undergone critical oral operation to extract a badly decayed fang resulting from an abscess.

Lira was brought to The Big Cat Sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on 14 March following a fundraising effort by director Cam Whitnall, who collected £500,000 to support her and four other rescued lions.

The Rescue Center

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

"Upon inspecting the lioness's oral cavity, I could see right away the damaged fang was highly inflamed," said Mr Kertesz.

He thought the dental issue was due to a injury experienced over twelve months back, causing germs producing toxins within the fang.

"The approach I follow is non-human oral health issues need to be treated in the safest, the least invasive and safest way," he explained.

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

The Animal Rescue Facility

The sanctuary reported the removed fang was 8cm (3.14 inches) long, with the dentist having to remove a pocket of pus from beneath the tooth and seal the large wound with seven dissolving sutures.

He also performed a dental procedure on the opposing upper canine tooth, which was also found to be infected.

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

She said the staff had observed "a small lump on the lioness's face" but it had been impossible to determine "how serious the condition was."

"Lira will be a little uncomfortable to begin with, but now that the infectious materials are out of her body, she will start to feel much better over the coming days," commented the curator.

This vital operation marks a major milestone in the lioness's healing process after her arrival from the conflict area.