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The Big Cat Sanctuary

A three-year-old lioness rescued from conflict-ridden the war zone has undergone critical dental surgery to extract a badly decayed canine tooth resulting from an infection.

Lira arrived at The Big Cat Sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on 14 March following a fundraising effort by managing director the sanctuary's leader, who raised £500,000 to fund her and several other lions from Ukraine.

The Rescue Center

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

"Upon inspecting Lira's jaw and mouth, I could see right away the damaged fang was severely infected," stated Mr Kertesz.

He believed the infection was caused by a trauma experienced over twelve months back, leading to bacteria producing toxins inside the tooth.

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

The expert explained that as Lira did not need to catch prey, extraction was the most "sensible and ethical solution."

The Big Cat Sanctuary

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 significant opening with seven dissolving sutures.

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 staff had spotted "a minor swelling on the lioness's face" but it had been impossible to determine "the extent of the problem."

"Lira will be somewhat sore to begin with, but now that the toxins are out of her body, she will start to feel much better over the coming days," added the curator.

This vital operation represents a significant step in Lira's recovery after her rescue from Ukraine.