(ECNS) -- Chinese veterinarians successfully completed the world's first cataract surgery on a snow leopard on Tuesday at the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Wildlife Zoo (Xining Zoo).
An intraocular lens was implanted in the right eye of Linghan, an older snow leopard, after the cataract was removed.
Veterinarians finished the procedure in roughly three hours and Linghan woke up 20 minutes later.
The procedure marked the first cataract surgery performed on a snow leopard not only in China, but worldwide, according to the official zoo statement.
Linghan was injured when first rescued from the wild in January and was sent to the Xining Zoo.
After the snow leopard was examined, experts learned that Linghan was 11 years old, roughly the maximum age for the species.
