Experience: I brought a bear back to life
I was in India, performing dentistry on my first animal patient, and it was supposed to be a straightforward operation
TL;DR
- The author, a dentist of 40 years, became involved in animal dentistry after a patient showed him photos of bears with broken teeth due to poaching.
- His first animal dental operation was on a 14-year-old sloth bear named Anthony in India, to remove a tumor and bad teeth.
- During the surgery, Anthony's pulse and breathing stopped due to anesthesia complications, but the author and a veterinary dentist revived him using CPR and emergency drugs.
- Since then, the author has performed dentistry on hundreds of bears, tigers, lions, hyenas, gorillas, and orangutans, earning the nickname "Bear Drills".
- Operating on animals presents unique challenges, including their much larger teeth and the need for specialized tools.
- The author finds animal dentistry more stressful than his regular practice but incredibly fulfilling, seeing positive changes in the animals' behavior after treatment.