A tiger by the teeth: Vets begin root canal on 400-pound patient

Dr. Skip Nelson was visibly nervous — a 400-pound pet tiger with two broken teeth was about to be delivered in the back of a van yesterday to his Kirkland clinic for a root canal.

The tiger, a Siberian-Bengal mix, would need to be sedated, and the six minutes it would take for the drug to work could be a disaster. The big cat, named Bengo, was arriving in a makeshift container, and Nelson worried what could happen if Bengo got upset.

"I've had second thoughts," said Nelson, 62, a former zoo veterinarian. "Tigers don't necessarily like having a needle stuck in their butt."

As it turned out, 18-month-old Bengo was a placid patient — more of a pussycat than a wild beast capable of breaking someone's neck with a swipe of his paw.

"He's a delightful tiger," said Nelson. "He's the kind of tiger that makes you all think you can get away with this."

Bengo broke his teeth chewing on his cage, trying to get out to play with a cougar, said the owner, who asked not to be named because he feared negative publicity. He said Bengo and the cougar often play together, but he keeps them separated because Bengo would tire her out. The cougar weighs just 120 pounds.

The owner, who also has a black bear, is a member of the Chehalis chapter of the Phoenix Exotic Wildlife Association, a national organization that believes in the right of people to own exotic animals such as bears, cougars and tigers.

He said he doesn't live in Pierce or King counties, where it's illegal to have exotic pets.

He bought Bengo for $1,000 from a 30-year line of tigers bred in captivity. He said the tiger, whose front paws are declawed, has a wonderful disposition and has been bred to be comfortable around humans. Bengo has been handled often since he was a cub and has learned to do such tasks as lie down before getting his food. The owner said he often goes into Bengo's cage and hangs out with him.

"As long as you don't touch his chicken, he's happy with everyone," he said.

Nelson's practice, The Exotic Pet & Bird Clinic, usually deals with ferrets, parrots, prairie dogs, reptiles, monkeys and smaller nondomestic cats such as bobcats and lynxes. While Nelson is opposed to private ownership of large wild animals, he realizes there are not many places to turn when your tiger needs a root canal.

Before Bengo arrived yesterday, Nelson played out every worst-case scenario in his head, except the noisy garbage truck that pulled up out front right at Bengo's appointment time.

Fortunately, Bengo was late. The owner apparently had a hard time getting a friend to help him lift the tiger cage into his van.

Nelson sprang into action. Wearing a tie with tigers on it, he warmly greeted the friendly tiger and stroked his big head.

Nelson gave him two shots of narcotics using a needle mounted on a long pole. The tiger fell asleep and was wheeled into the small office in an office park behind the Kirkland Park Place shopping mall.

Dr. Gregg DuPont, 47, a veterinarian dentist from the Shoreline Veterinary Dental Clinic, performed the surgery, joking nervously about a tiger his wife, also a vet, had worked on that had awakened slightly during a procedure.

Most of the neighbors had no idea what was going on.

"We don't really get to see anything," said Melanie Myers, an administrative assistant at Sears Driving School, next door.

It's likely not the last time Nelson will see Bengo. The root canal wasn't completed yesterday because the apex of the root was too exposed. So DuPont cleaned out the infection, packed the interior of the tooth and put a temporary cap on the root. Bengo will need to come back in six months to have the work completed.

Bobbi Nodell: 206-464-2342 or bnodell@seattletimes.com.