MRI scans show he has hydrocephalus, a build up of fluid inside his skull that is putting pressure on his brain.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a condition that also occurs in humans, affecting one in every 500 births. Other cases can be triggered by illness or injury later in life.<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n
Specialist vets working with the Wildwood Trust, near Canterbury, where Boki lives, will insert a tube in his brain to drain the fluid and relieve the pressure.<\/p>\n
Mark Habben, zoological director at the trust, told Sky News that Boki was \u201ccharismatic and a lot of fun\u201d but his condition tends to flare up after bouts of high energy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt impedes his life,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want him to be able to climb up trees and jump in ponds without suffering negatively from that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The three-hour operation will be carried out by Romain Pizzi, an Edinburgh-based specialist with a reputation for taking on cases that other vets won\u2019t touch.<\/p>\n
He will make a small hole in Boki\u2019s skull and run a tube from inside his brain, then under his skin down to his bladder, where it will drain the excess fluid.<\/p>\n
The vet has carried out the procedure just once before, on an Asiatic black bear in Laos. The surgery was a success, giving the Wildwood Trust confidence it\u2019s the right option for Boki.<\/p>\n
Mr Habben said Boki is also in good physical condition and rapidly putting on weight.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we did not think this would have a happy ending, we would not put him or ourselves through the physical and emotional stress of conducting something like this,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are very optimistic about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Boki was born at Port Lympne wildlife park in Kent<\/strong>, where his parents were brought after being rescued. But he was aggressively rejected by his family and was moved to the Wildwood Trust.<\/p>\nThe decision to go ahead with surgery was given extra urgency by Boki\u2019s imminent torpor, a winter dormancy similar to hibernation.<\/p>\n
\u201cDoing it now is the right thing to do because it\u2019s much easier to monitor him,\u201d said Mr Habben.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf there is any medication or aftercare he needs, I don\u2019t want him to be asleep for four months to administer that.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs he recovers from surgery we will be assessing him on a day-to-day basis to see when he can resume normal life of being a young bear again.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
This post appeared first on sky.com<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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