Polar Bear With Bad Breath Gets Surgery

[matcom]

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ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Yukon is a 16-year-old polar bear with massive paws and some mighty stinky breath. "You can just enter his den and you can smell it," said Dr. Jeff Wyatt, Director of Animal Health and Conservation at Seneca Park Zoo. "It's kinda funky."

But after a procedure at Seneca Park Zoo on Thursday, veterinarians are hoping the odor emitting from Yukon's big mouth will soon be a breath of fresh of air.

After zoo staff determined Yukon's smelly problem was caused by an infected tooth, Wyatt and a team of veterinarians extracted the beast's tooth with a small hammer and chisel.

The 805-pound tranquilized bear remained still on top of a large examination table, only sighing occasionally during the hour-long procedure, according to the Democrat & Chronicle of Rochester.

Wyatt, who performed the surgery, said Yukon's tooth problem is actually quite common in older bears.

Zoo officials said the bear -- and his breath -- are expected to make a full recovery in a few weeks.

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2005/05/26/polar_bear_with_bad_breath_gets_surgery/

[matcom]

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