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A Wildlife Rescue Center

An adolescent lioness rescued from war-torn Ukraine has received vital oral operation to extract a severely infected canine tooth caused by an infection.

Lira arrived at The Big Cat Sanctuary in Kent, England on 14 March after a campaign by managing director the sanctuary's leader, who collected half a million pounds 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 Lira's jaw and mouth, I could see right away the damaged fang was severely infected," said the dentist.

He believed the infection was caused by a injury experienced more than a year ago, causing germs producing harmful substances inside the tooth.

"The approach I follow is animal oral health issues should be addressed in the most predictable, the least invasive and safest way," he explained.

The expert clarified that as the lioness no longer required 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 extract a accumulated infection from beneath the tooth and close the significant opening with multiple absorbable stitches.

He additionally conducted a root canal treatment on the opposing upper canine tooth, which was discovered to have a similar issue.

Briony Smith, curator at the facility, said the operation was a "complete success."

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

"Lira will be somewhat sore to initially, but now that the infectious materials are removed from her system, she will begin improving over the next few days," added Ms Smith.

The successful surgery represents a major milestone in the lioness's healing process after her arrival from the conflict area.