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A Wildlife Rescue Center

An adolescent female lion rescued from conflict-ridden the war zone has undergone critical dental surgery to extract a badly decayed fang caused by an abscess.

The lioness arrived at The Big Cat Sanctuary in Smarden, Kent on 14 March following a fundraising effort by director the sanctuary's leader, who raised half a million pounds to support her and four other rescued lions.

The Rescue Center

The surgery was performed on Friday by dentist Peter Kertesz, who has cared for hundreds of large felines.

"Upon inspecting Lira's jaw and mouth, I could see immediately the damaged fang was highly inflamed," stated Mr Kertesz.

He believed the dental issue was caused by a injury sustained over twelve months back, causing bacteria producing harmful substances within the fang.

"My philosophy is non-human oral health issues need to be treated in the safest, the least invasive and safest way," he explained.

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

The Animal Rescue Facility

The rescue center reported the extracted tooth was 3.14 inches in length, with Mr Kertesz having to remove a accumulated infection from beneath the tooth and seal the significant opening with seven dissolving sutures.

He also performed a root canal treatment on the opposing upper canine tooth, which was also found to be infected.

Briony Smith, curator at The Big Cat Sanctuary, declared the operation was a "complete success."

She noted the team had observed "a small lump on the lioness's face" but it had been impossible to determine "how serious the condition was."

"Lira will be a little uncomfortable to initially, but now that the toxins are removed from her system, she will begin improving over the coming days," commented Ms Smith.

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