JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Update: Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens posted on Facebook Wednesday that "Archie's tooth extraction was a success!"
Doctors from around the world are coming to Jacksonville to remove an abscess tooth from Archie, the world's oldest male white rhino who calls the Jacksonville Zoo home and is 54 years old.
“The median life expectancy is 35, but we've been really, really fortunate to have him here, and for this long,” said Curtis Dvorak, spokesperson of the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens.
Archie has been seen by generations of families, which is why so many specialists are coming in for this dentist appointment.
“They've tried to treat it topically, they've tried to treat it without having to go to extreme measures," Dvorak told First Coast News. "But, it's been determined by our animal care specialists that it needs to be removed, and they need to go in and take a much closer look.”
To safely perform the procedure, the animal specialists say they must sedate the white rhino, which comes with risks because of Archie's old age.
“This is really our only option," Dvorak said. "Because the other option is to let the abscess continue. We know where that leaves, that leads to infection and then eventually death. And so, this has been determined as you know, we need to take this step and he's, we feel he's healthy enough to do it.”
The animal care specialists say Archie is healthy enough to go through the surgery this week and hopes he will make a speedy recovery.
