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The Big Cat Sanctuary

A three-year-old lioness saved from war-torn the war zone has received critical dental surgery to extract a badly decayed canine tooth resulting from an abscess.

The lioness arrived at The Big Cat Sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on 14 March after a campaign by director Cam Whitnall, who collected £500,000 to support her and four other rescued lions.

The Rescue Center

The procedure was carried out on Friday by dentist Peter Kertesz, who has cared for hundreds of large felines.

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

He believed the dental issue was caused by a trauma sustained over twelve months back, causing bacteria producing harmful substances inside the tooth.

"The approach I follow is animal dental problems need to be treated in the most predictable, the most conservative and safest way," he said.

The expert clarified that as Lira did not need to catch prey, removal was the most "logical and humane option."

The Animal Rescue Facility

The rescue center said the extracted tooth was 3.14 inches in length, with Mr Kertesz having to extract a pocket of pus from beneath the tooth and seal the significant opening with multiple absorbable stitches.

He also performed a root canal treatment on the corresponding top fang, which was discovered to have a similar issue.

Briony Smith, manager at the facility, said the procedure was a "complete success."

She noted the staff had observed "a small lump on the lioness's face" but it had been impossible to assess "the extent of the problem."

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

The successful surgery represents a major milestone in Lira's recovery after her arrival from the conflict area.