White tiger Sona, who was recently rescued from Portugal after spending his entire life in a circus, has now undergone his first comprehensive examination by our veterinarian. The assessment confirmed that his paw pads are in poor condition and that he is severely underweight. His teeth are also in very bad shape. Below, we share more details about the examination.
Testing in quarantine
Upon arrival at our rescue centre in Spain, Sona tested positive for salmonella. Fortunately, we were able to treat him successfully during his quarantine period. Once he tested negative for the bacteria, it was time to sedate him and carry out a thorough veterinary examination. We needed to be sure he was not carrying any other diseases before he was given access to his outdoor enclosure.
Consequences of his past
Sona spent his entire life in a cramped circus trailer, with only limited access to a small outdoor area. The floor of the trailer was hard, and he had very little space to move around.“Sona’s condition clearly reflects the past of animals like these, which are forced to live their entire lives in very small spaces on hard and damp surfaces. This can cause serious damage to their paw pads.”
Extensive examination
The veterinary check confirmed that Sona was extremely underweight. He received a body condition score of 3 on a scale of 1 (emaciated) to 9 (obese).
In addition, Sona was having difficulty walking, as our animal caretakers had already noticed during the quarantine period. His joints appear to function well, but during the examination we found ulcers on the paw pad of his left hind leg. It is also clearly visible that his front paws have been declawed: the tips of his toes have been amputated, preventing his claws from regrowing.
Blood pressure and teeth
Sona’s blood pressure was also found to be much too high. “Possible causes of high blood pressure include kidney problems, so we will carry out further tests to determine the exact cause,” explains Héctor Sanz.
In addition, Sona is missing one of his canine teeth on the right side of his mouth. On the left side, we found a hard mass of tissue (a swelling). We have taken a sample of this tissue for further analysis.
