Veterinarians perform medical procedure on Albert, the grizzly bear at Lions, Tigers and Bears. Courtesy photo: LTB
SAN DIEGO–A team of veterinarians from Southern California Saturday traveled to Lions Tigers and Bears to perform physical exams and dental procedures on two of the sanctuary’s rescued animals.
Vets from Southern California Veterinary Dental Specialties and Oral Surgery, Discovery Valley Animal Hospital, and Big Bear Alpine Zoo spent the day examining Albert, the grizzly bear and Hank the tiger.
Two bobcats and a leopard were also slated to have examinations, but the procedures on Hank and Albert took longer than expected. Albert had one root canal and one tooth extraction, while Hank’s five root canals took over three hours, according to Bobbi Brink, director of Lions Tigers and Bears.
“Generally speaking, both Hank and Albert appear to be in excellent health”, said Brink.
Blood, urine and stool samples were taken and sent to labs for examination to determine any parasites or underlying conditions.
Lions Tigers and Bears is San Diego’s only non-profit accredited big cat, bear and exotic animal rescue sanctuary. The sanctuary is a federally and state licensed non-profit 501(c)(3) rescue facility dedicated to providing a safe haven to abused and abandoned exotic animals while inspiring an educational forum to end the exotic animal trade. It is a no kill, no breed and no sell facility that allows the animals in its care the opportunity to live out their lives with dignity in a caring and safe environment.
