Root Canal For Tiger's Toothache
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – A group of doctors got to the root of a problem to help a tiger at Zoo Miami restore his roar.
"Hati," an endangered Malayan tiger, had a toothache that would make even the kindest tiger upset. The Malayan tiger is classified as endangered, they can only be found on the Malay Peninsula and there is estimated to be about 1,000 of them left.
Hati was born at the Fort Worth Zoo and arrived at Zoo Miami in November of 2004 as part of a planned captive breeding program.
- Click here to see a slideshow of the operation.
Now, 10 years later, Hati has received a top of the line root canal on his lower right canine tooth after zookeepers noticed that he had fractured it in an unknown manner.
Carnivores, like Hati, often fracture their teeth in the midst of the wild, which could lead up to serious infections and abscesses that can, on occasion, result in death.
Dr. K. Randall Groh and his staff from Dental Leaders in Coral Gables teamed up with the veterinarians from Zoo Miami, Dr. Chriss Miller and Dr. Meredith Persky, to take on the tiger's root canal.
The hour long procedure relieved Hati from what could have been an infection. Hati has been returned to his enclosure where he is expected to make a full recovery.
