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The Big Cat Sanctuary

A three-year-old female lion rescued from war-torn Ukraine has received vital oral operation to remove a severely infected canine tooth resulting from an infection.

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

The Big Cat Sanctuary

The procedure was carried out on Friday by 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 severely infected," said the dentist.

He thought the dental issue was due to a injury experienced over twelve months back, leading to bacteria producing harmful substances within the fang.

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

Mr Kertesz clarified that as the lioness did not need to hunt for food, extraction was the most "sensible and ethical solution."

The Big Cat Sanctuary

The sanctuary said the removed fang was 8cm (3.14 inches) long, with Mr Kertesz having to remove a pocket of pus from under the fang and close the large wound with multiple absorbable stitches.

He additionally conducted a dental procedure on the corresponding top fang, which was also found to be infected.

Briony Smith, curator at The Big Cat Sanctuary, declared the procedure was a "total triumph."

She noted the team had spotted "a small lump on Lira's jawline" but it had been impossible to assess "the extent of the problem."

"Lira will be somewhat sore to initially, but now that the infectious materials are out of her body, she will begin improving over the coming days," added the curator.

This vital operation represents a significant step in the lioness's healing process after her rescue from Ukraine.