Animals on the operating table

Performing surgery can be a complicated process - but when it's an elephant with a cataract or a grumpy lion that needs a (big)

CAT scan - it can get a whole lot trickier

Mango, a 19-year-old male Syrian brown bear, rests on a bed as vets and staff prepare him for surgery in the Ramat Gan Zoological Center's animal hospital near Tel Aviv, Israel. Picture: AP Photo/Ariel Schalit

At Blair Drummond Safari Park near Stirling, Scotland, vets and safari park staff examin a 14-year-old giraffe called Kelly. Keepers at the park noticed the animal was not digesting her food thoroughly and it was suspected she might have a problem with one of her molars.. Picture: Andrew Milligan/PA

A team of around 12 vets and safari park staff worked on the animal at her enclosure which she shares with four other female giraffes. Picture: Andrew Milligan/PA

Sam Mitchell monitors Kelly the giraffe during her operation. Picture: Andrew Milligan/PA

Polar bear Walker, around 530 kilos, under anaesthetic at the Highland Wildlife Park in Kingussie after a team of 25 lifted lifted him onto an operating table where a team of veterinary dentists X-rayed and examined an upper canine that staff keepers are concerned about. Picture: Hemedia / Swns

X-Rays showed that at present there is no need for root surgery but Walker will be monitored over the coming weeks and further inspection will ultimately need further dental surgeryPicture: Hemedia / Swns

A little owl, (Athene noctua) receives acupuncture treatment at Brinzal, an owl-rescue charity based in a park near Madrid...Picture: GERARD JULIEN/AFP/Getty Images

...Two months ago this 25-centimetre (10-inch) bird hurt his back when he flew into a chimney at a factory in eastern Madrid...Picture: GERARD JULIEN/AFP/Getty Images

...About 1,200 birds are brought to the centre each year, of which about 70 percent recover and can be returned to the wild, says Brinzal's co-ordinator, Patricia Orejas.Picture: Gerard Julien /AFP/Getty Images

A 10-year-old pet goldfish named George prepares to go under the knife to remove a life-threatening tumour at the Lort Smith Animal Hospital in Melbourne, Australia...Picture: Reuters/Lort Smith Animal Hospital

...The 45-minute long procedure was performed by vet Tristan Rich who described the operation as 'fiddly'. The fish was sedated by water laced with anaesthetic and once the tumour was removed the wound was sealed with tissue glue followed by antibiotics and painkillers.Picture: Reuters/Lort Smith Animal Hospital

African elephant Duchess, from Paignton Zoo in Devon, receives anaesthetic through her trunk as she becomes the first elephant in the UK to undergo a cataract operation. The procedure was successful. Picture: Richard Austin /Rex Features

Gov, also got scanned to try and determine if she suffers from Vitamin A Deficiency at Rambam Hospital in Haifa.Picture: Rex Features

Two-year-old Samson, a Barbary lion, undergoing a (big) CAT scan at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Picture: REX FEATURES

A brown bear is checked by foreign vets and local staff members at the Four Paws Bear Sanctuary in Pristina, Kosovo. Six adult brown bears have been rescued from illegal private zoos all over Kosovo, and three recently found brown bear orphan cubs received thorough health check-ups and dental treatment. Picture: REUTERS

Gorilla Kalonge being assessed in the quarantine zone at the Gorilla Doctors facility in the Democratic Republic of CongoPicture: Marcus Westberg /Barcroft Media

A veterinary technician monitors the status of a horse undergoing surgery on a fractured leg at the Dueppel animal clinic in Berlin, Germany. Picture: Theo Heimann/Getty Images

The same clinic also treats smaller omestic animals, like this cat who had its leg plastered following a break.Picture: Theo Heimann/Getty Images

Open wide: Sirius the tiger being checked by a vet before he is transported to his new home at the Parc De Felines in Nesle, FrancePicture: REX FEATURES

Vet Julia Barnes trying to remove a hook from the stomach of a Wobbegong Shark at Australia's Taronga Zoo. Picture: REX FEATURES

Boris the Polar bear is sedated before undergoing a full physical exam at the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium's animal hospital in Tacoma, Washington. The team of veterinarians, technicians and staff also performed a root canal and some minor eye surgery on the 27-year-old polar bear. Picture: Getty Images

Chequita the baby Capuchin monkey cuddling her mother Cassie while she has an operation on her hand at Melbourne Zoo, Australia. Picture: REX FEATURES

Lowry Park Zoo Animal Clinic vet technician Angie Jones holds Buttonwood steady as zoo veterinarian Dr. David Murphy performs some initial tests on the newborn manateePicture: Toni L Sandys/Ap

Mr Ben, a pygmy slow loris, is administed anesthetic as he undergoes a routine health and dental check at Bristol Zoo. The furry three-year-old was diagnosed with some minor gum problems and given a dose of antibiotics. Picture: Matt Cardy/Getty Images

Dentist Stephen Coles and his team work to extract a damaged molar from the mouth of 10-year-old male lion Harare during an operation at Melbourne ZooPicture: REX FEATURES

...and finally, vets remove a coconut from the hand of a monkey at Bangkok ZooPicture: REX FEATURES

end

cast Animals on the operating table

images and text credit www. www.telegraph.co www.mirror.co

Music wav. created olga.e.

thanks for watching