🔗 Share this article Rescued Ukrainian Lioness Receives Essential Surgery The Big Cat Sanctuary A lioness named Lira receiving essential dental care to extract a badly infected tooth An adolescent lioness saved from conflict-ridden the war zone has undergone vital oral operation to remove a badly decayed fang caused by an infection. Lira was brought to The Big Cat Sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on 14 March after a fundraising effort by managing director the sanctuary's leader, who collected half a million pounds to support her and four other rescued lions. The Big Cat Sanctuary Amani and Lira are two of the big cats from Ukraine that arrived in March The surgery 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 right away the broken tooth was highly inflamed," said Mr Kertesz. He thought the dental issue was caused by a trauma experienced more than a year ago, leading to bacteria creating harmful substances within the fang. "The approach I follow is non-human dental problems need to be treated in the most predictable, the least invasive and safest way," he explained. The expert explained that as the lioness no longer required to hunt for food, removal was the most "sensible and ethical solution." The Animal Rescue Facility The removed fang measured 8 centimeters, equivalent to 3.14 inches The sanctuary reported the extracted tooth was 8cm (3.14 inches) long, with Mr Kertesz having to remove a accumulated infection from under the fang and close the large wound 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 "complete success." She said the team had observed "a minor swelling on Lira's jawline" but it had been difficult to assess "the extent of the problem." "The lioness will be a little uncomfortable to initially, 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 represents a significant step in the lioness's healing process after her rescue from Ukraine.