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A Wildlife Rescue Center

An adolescent female lion rescued from conflict-ridden the war zone has undergone critical oral operation to remove a severely infected canine tooth resulting from an infection.

The lioness was brought to The Big Cat Sanctuary in Kent, England on March 14 after a campaign by managing director the sanctuary's leader, who raised £500,000 to fund her and four other rescued lions.

The Big Cat Sanctuary

The surgery was performed on Friday by veterinary dentist Peter Kertesz, who has treated about 450 big cats.

"Upon inspecting Lira's jaw and mouth, I could see immediately the broken tooth was severely infected," stated Mr Kertesz.

He thought the dental issue was due to a injury sustained more than a year ago, causing bacteria producing toxins within the fang.

"The approach I follow is non-human oral health issues need to be treated in the most predictable, the least invasive and safest way," he said.

The expert explained that as Lira no longer required to hunt for food, extraction was the most "sensible and ethical solution."

The Big Cat Sanctuary

The sanctuary said the extracted tooth was 8cm (3.14 inches) long, with the dentist 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 corresponding top fang, which was discovered to have a similar issue.

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

She said the staff had spotted "a small lump on Lira's jawline" but it had been difficult to assess "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 begin improving over the next few days," commented Ms Smith.

The successful surgery marks a significant step in Lira's recovery after her arrival from the conflict area.