On May 23rd, two of our older captive cheetahs went to Otjiwarongo to see a human dentist, Dr. Dennis Profitt. We are very fortunate to have the generous and gracious Dr. Profitt available to perform dental work on all our cheetahs with dental issues in order to help keep their teeth as healthy as possible.
The two most recent treatments were two extractions and a root canal for Rosy, and two extractions for Misty. Most often when a tooth is broken or damaged, he will try to preserve the tooth by performing a root canal. However, when advanced periodontal disease develops, which can be age-related or due to impaction of bone or foreign material between the gums and the teeth, the teeth will sometimes need to be extracted due to secondary infection and periodontal bone loss.
Fortunately there are plenty of teeth in the mouth, and despite having a few extractions these two cheetah females will go on being able to eat with no long-term problems. In fact, removing and treating the infected teeth will reduce oral pain and inflammation and make them much more comfortable in the long run. And they will still have pretty smiles! Thank you Dr. Profitt for your on-going generosity and care of CCF’s cheetahs.
Best wishes,
Gabriella Flacke DMV
Veterinarian
Cheetah Conservation Fund
Photos copyright © Cheetah Conservation Fund 2012
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