Nyan htoo, a bear rescued by monks in Myanmar, is now recovering after going through a 4-hour operation to remove 3 kilograms (around 7 pounds) of his tongue due to a mysterious illness, according to the veterinarians who operated on him.
Nyan htoo — meaning “bright” — and his brother were both rescued by monks who lived in a monastery in Myanmar. The bear brothers were supposed to be sold illegally in China, according to BBC.
Unlike his brother, Nyan htoo had a physical complication where his tongue mysteriously swelled up to 3 kilograms (7 pounds). This illness had terrorized the poor bear since he was still a cub.
Because of his condition, Nyan htoo would often have to rest his head against the cage just to support his upper body weight. He also used to have a hard time walking because his tongue was always dragging across the ground.
Despite all the problems, Nyan htoo still kept a positive attitude and continued to play with his brother.
“This was a really unusual medical condition – never before seen in any species of bear – but we weren’t about to give up on Nyan htoo,” a vet nurse from the Animals Asia’s Vietnam Bear Rescue Centre, Caroline Nelson, said.
Doctors are still baffled by Nyan htoo’s mysterious illness, but they speculated it could be elephantiasis, a mosquito-transmitted infection that swells the affected body part to extreme levels.
“We have been able to make a tangible improvement in the quality of Nyan htoo’s life,” Bacon said.
Screenshot via BBC
