Dental care the extra layer of attention to health for the animals at Adelaide Zoo and Monarto Safari Park

African lion Inkosi, born in 2007 as part of South Australia's Monarto Safari Park’s first-ever litter of cubs, has his teeth checked and treated during a visit in 2022 by specialist Dr David Clarke, sponsored by North Adelaide Dental Care, for Zoos SA.
Image courtesy Zoos SA

The animal health centre for Adelaide Zoo and Monarto Safari Park provided the extra dimension of dental care. North Adelaide Dental Care was the dental clinic of choice for Zoos SA, actively supporting the animal health centre's work in the early 21st Century..

With staff at the Adelaide Zoo, the innovative North Adelaide Dental Care, one of Australia’s first general dental practices, ran annual oral health activities with Adelaide Zoo during events such as National Dental Health Week. Its principal dentist Dr Greg Miller and his team helped deliver treatment to a wide range of animals and providing ongoing advice regarding dental treatment to Zoos SA.

North Adelaide Dental also sponsored Zoos SA getting access to United States of America-trained veterinary dental specialist Dr David Clarke from Dental Care for Pets in Victoria in 2022. Clarke did dental work on African lion Inkosi, born in 2007 as part of Monarto safari park’s first-ever litter of cubs, and spotted hyena Thandiwe, also born in 2014 at Monarto and mother to twins Jaali and Kanzi in 2017.

Inkosi had a root canal and filling done while Thandiwe also a root canal, a molar capped and four fractured teeth removed. African lions could eat up to 40 kilograms of meat in a single meal and the small incisors at the front of the mouth were used for gripping and tearing their meal while their canine teeth could be up to seven centimetres long. Spotted hyenas had around 34 teeth, including conical premolars specialised for breaking and crushing bones. The species could digest hard materials such as horns, bones, hooves and teeth of other animals.

Dr Clarke also made a visit to assist local veterinary dentist Dr Kirsten Hailstone in assessing Zoos SA primate patients under general anaesthetic, at the animal health centre. Adelaide Zoo’s mandrill Tabah had a broken tooth that was extracted. Tabah was the dominant male Mandrill at the zoo and his canines measured around five centimetres long that were bared as the species' way of greeting each other. Female mandrill Niari had further root canal work.

At Monarto Safari Park, male chimpanzee Sandali had root canals, with a team of 20 people involved in the procedure. Animals in Zoos SA’s care only had general anaesthetic once every few years so the vet team took the opportunity for a full health check on the chimp and mandrills, assessing ears, eyes, skin and taking blood. Sandali’s procedure also included a detailed heart ultrasound and multiple x-rays to set a baseline for comparing changes.

Chimpanzees and mandrills, with 32 teeth like humans, were both species listed as endangered to extinction on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) red list.