COLUMBUS, Ohio (WTVN)--The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium recently put their new piece of equipment to good use.
The zoo says a generous donor provided the funds for the facility to obtain a Computerized Axial Tomography machine, or CT scanner. Recently, zookeepers used it to give Tomo, an African Lion, a CT scan.
Doctors say Tomo has had an infection in his gums in recent weeks, but the CT scan determined that it was localized, and that it should clear up after a couple weeks of oral medication.
Tomo is a 14-year-old African lion who came to the Columbus Zoo in May 2006 from the San Diego Zoo as part of a breeding recommendation from the African Lion Species Survival Plan® (SSP). Since his arrival in central Ohio, Tomo has fathered three litters, including the most recent two litters totaling five cubs born in 2015.
Before the installation of the CAT scan unit earlier last month, the Zoo would transport animals to The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine or MedVet Medical & Cancer Centers for Pets in Worthington, which was a more complicated process.
With this technology available on site, Zoo veterinarians are now able to perform CAT scans on large animals, like lions or gorillas, quickly and safely at the Zoo.
(Photo and video courtesy Columbus Zoo)