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The Big Cat Sanctuary

A three-year-old lioness saved from war-torn the war zone has undergone critical dental surgery to remove a badly decayed fang resulting from an abscess.

The lioness arrived at a wildlife sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on 14 March after a fundraising effort by managing director the sanctuary's leader, who raised £500,000 to support her and four other rescued lions.

The Rescue Center

The procedure was carried out on last week by veterinary 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 infection was due to a injury sustained more than a year ago, causing germs creating harmful substances within the fang.

"My philosophy is animal oral health issues need to be treated in the safest, the most conservative and most secure manner," he explained.

Mr Kertesz clarified that as the lioness no longer required to catch prey, extraction was the most "logical and humane option."

The Big Cat Sanctuary

The sanctuary said the extracted tooth was 8cm (3.14 inches) long, with Mr Kertesz having to remove a pocket of pus from beneath the tooth and close the significant opening with multiple absorbable stitches.

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

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

She noted the team had observed "a small lump on Lira's jawline" but it had been difficult to assess "how serious the condition was."

"The lioness will be somewhat sore to begin with, but now that the infectious materials are out of her body, she will begin improving over the next few days," commented Ms Smith.

The successful surgery represents a major milestone in the lioness's healing process after her rescue from Ukraine.