Summary

TAPE_NUMBER: EF01/0237 IN_TIME: 04:30:25 - 07:42:37 - 10:20:46 LENGTH: 02:39 SOURCES: APTN RESTRICTIONS: FEED: VARIOUS (THE ABOVE TIME-CODE IS TIME-OF-DAY) SCRIPT: Russian/Eng/Nat XFA Moscow Zoo's walruses need urgent dental attention - fortunately help is on its way Headed by British veterinarian, John Lewis, a group of surgeons plan to operate on all ten walruses at the end of April On Wednesday Lewis was in Moscow to finalise some of the details on just how to help the walruses who are all suffering from severe tusk decay and infection The ten Moscow walruses were rescued as orphans in the wild They are all about four years old but already weigh eight hundred kilogrammes each In captivity, most walruses grind down their tusks on the concrete in their enclosure Others succumb to tooth decay Eventually, the rotten tusks must be removed or the walrus will not survive Currently, the animals are on antibiotics to relieve the pain All ten Moscow walruses will undergo tusk removal surgery at the end of April Lewis and a team of specialists will convert one of the walruses' three indoor pools into an operating room Although Lewis and his team have operated on walruses before, removing the tusks of ten of these large mammals, at one sitting, is certainly a first for the veterinary profession Anna Pavlova considers the walruses like her own children She's raised them since they arrived in Moscow, feeding them milk and even sleeping with them to keep them warm But now she's having to count on the dentist if they're to continue enjoying their watery enclosure SOUNDBITE: (Russian) When the tusks are traumatised or rubbed down, there is an opportunity for infection to creep in The infection spreads into the sinuses and can cause death, which can occur without any warning SUPER CAPTION: Anna Pavlova, Zoologist and Care giver for the Moscow Zoo Walruses SOUNDBITE: (English) Walruses have been operated on before, not that often And doing ten in a batch well, I guess that is probably unique SUPER CAPTION: John Lewis, UK veterinarian SOUNDBITE: (Russian) I hope that the operations will go forward and be successful Without these operations, the consequences would be tragic SUPER CAPTION: Anna Pavlova, Zoologist and Care giver for the Moscow Zoo Walruses SHOTLIST: Moscow, Russia - 28 February 2001 1 Wide view of Moscow Zoo gates 2 Wide view walrus pool 3 Wide view walrus being fed 4 Close-up walrus being fed 5 Close-up walrus digging in snow 6 Feeding walruses 7 Close-up walrus rubbing tusks 8 Wide view walrus falls into pool 9 Wide view walruses dive into pool 10 Set up Anna Pavlova 11 Close-up walrus bearing tusks 12 SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Anna Pavlova, Zoologist and Care giver for the Moscow Zoo Walruses 13 Visitors looking at walruses 14 Set up John Lewis 15 Close-up Lewis's hands 16 SOUNDBITE: (English) John Lewis, UK veterinarian 17 Close-up walrus rubbing tusks 18 Walrus looks around 19 SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Anna Pavlova, Zoologist and Care giver for the Moscow Zoo Walruses 20 Wide view walrus dives from rock into water 21 Close-up zoo visitors watching walruses through glass 22 Walruses playing 23 Wide view walruses swimming?