This week we have received the visit of Sergio Soler, a veterinary specialist in dentistry who has made a revision to Kaiso, the inseparable friend of Petita, the Asian elephant. Elephants, like humans, require special care for their teeth, especially in advanced age.
Kaiso, 34, suffered a tooth fall last winter, a fact that is part of the physiology of elephants, as well as other mammals. After that, the zookeepers have been checking more attentive the teeth of the pachyderm and they detected a small lump in the mouth caused by a badly placed tooth that was pressing on the side of the oral cavity.
After the review, the veterinary dentist has determined that the portion of the tooth that is pressing on the side of the mouth should be cut. This intervention requires general anaesthesia so Kaiso veterinarians are evaluating it, as it may pose a risk and for the moment the elephant doesn´t have problems to eat.
However, it may be that due to this problem Kaiso is not able to chew the forage well and, therefore, do not assimilate all its nutrients. In these cases, the diet of the elephants is supplemented with special feed so that the animal sees all its nutritional needs covered.
The zookeepers and veterinarians of Terra Natura elephants take care of the pachyderms’ teeth to avoid problems in them. The mouth of the elephants is able to eat all kinds of plants and herbs, as well as branches and trunks.