Dental trip for Walker the polar bear

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Walker the polar bear, from Highland Wildlife Park in Kinguisse, Scotland, has undergone dental treatment for a troublesome tooth.

The 38 stone bear was treated after staff at the wildlife park noticed that his jaw was swollen. The 2 year old polar bear was given a course of antibiotics but the swelling did not heal and a team of vets was called in to help. Four vets worked together to tranquilise Walker before removing the affected tooth. After the procedure, they left the enclosure to allow the polar bear to come around from the anaesthetic.

Rachel Goddard, spokeswoman for the zoo, said that it was necessary to remove the affected tooth after Walker did not respond to antibiotics. Vets did an X-ray to see if root canal treatment would work, but the results showed that removing the tooth would be the only option.

The operation is usually a standard procedure but operating on a polar bear is not a typical day for vets and the size of the polar bear meant that he could not be transferred anywhere for treatment. Instead the keepers at the park made a bed of hay for Walker to lie on during the procedure. The extraction took about four hours and the keepers made a swift exit before the bear awoke.

Keepers at the wildlife park say that Walker has recovered well and is now up and about and eating normally.

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