Hyena Gets Gold Crown to Fix Teeth After Cub Injury

Three-year-old Jabali the spotted hyena is showing off his golden smile at Monarto Safari Park after veterinarians gave him a crown fit for wildlife royalty.

The young carnivore needed the custom-made gold-colored crown because he couldn't chew properly. An injury from when he was just four months old left him with dental deformities that made normal hyena activities nearly impossible.

"We could tell as he got sort of two years plus, that he was struggling a little bit to do normal hyena stuff, which is a lot of chewing on bones," said Zoos SA veterinarian Dr. Oliver Funnell. Another hyena had bitten Jabali's muzzle as a cub, and zookeepers knew it might cause problems as he grew.

A full head CT scan revealed the extent of the damage. Some teeth needed removal, while others required restoration to function properly.

The solution needed to be tough. Hyenas have one of the strongest bites in the animal kingdom and regularly crunch through giraffe leg bones as part of their natural diet.

Specialist Kirsten Hailstone from Adelaide Veterinary Dentistry created a crown from metal alloy strong enough to withstand those incredible jaw forces. The metal catches the light with a golden gleam, giving Jabali his distinctive new look.

One problematic premolar lacked proper enamel coating and would have eventually disintegrated. Hailstone planed it down and fitted the custom crown over top to protect the tooth and restore its function.

The procedure took five to six hours under anesthesia and laughing gas. Jabali traveled unconscious in a specially designed crate from the safari park to the dental clinic in Glen Osmond and back again.

Sunny's Take

What makes this story shine isn't just the gleaming crown. It's the care and creativity that went into solving Jabali's problem. Veterinarians could have simply removed the damaged teeth, but instead they found a way to preserve his natural abilities.

The collaboration between zoo staff and dental specialists shows how far animal medicine has come. Creating custom dental solutions for wildlife requires the same precision and expertise as human dentistry, just with much higher bite forces to consider.

Dr. Funnell reports that Jabali has recovered well from the surgery. The young hyena can now do what hyenas do best: crunch bones and explore his world with a smile that truly sparkles.