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A Wildlife Rescue Center

An adolescent lioness saved from war-torn Ukraine has received critical dental surgery to remove a badly decayed canine tooth caused by an infection.

The lioness arrived at The Big Cat Sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on March 14 following a campaign by managing director the sanctuary's leader, who collected half a million pounds to fund her and several other lions from Ukraine.

The Big Cat Sanctuary

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

"When I examined Lira's jaw and mouth, I could see immediately the damaged fang was severely infected," said the dentist.

He thought the dental issue was due to a trauma sustained more than a year ago, leading to germs creating harmful substances within the fang.

"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.

Mr Kertesz 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 reported the extracted tooth was 8cm (3.14 inches) long, with the dentist having to extract a pocket of pus from under the fang and close the significant opening with seven dissolving sutures.

He also performed a dental procedure on the opposing upper canine tooth, which was discovered to have a similar issue.

The curator, curator at the facility, declared the operation was a "total triumph."

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."

"The lioness will be a little uncomfortable to initially, but now that the toxins are out of her body, 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 rescue from Ukraine.