(credit: In-Sync Exotics Wildlife Rescue)

WYLIE (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — A veterinarian hopes groundbreaking surgery has relieved the arthritic hip pain of a 13-year-old Siberian tiger at a North Texas sanctuary.

Tacoma is one of the 66 big cats at the In-Sync Exotics Wildlife Rescue and Education Center in Wylie. The non-profit organization cares for big cats taht have been abused or abandoned.

President Vicky Keahey says Tacoma has suffered from hip dysplasia for two years. The pain started to affect him four months ago when he stopped exercising and his hind leg muscles began to wither. All he did was sleep.

Dr. Toby Willis operated on Tacoma last week, cutting the nerves that carry pain impulses from his hip to his brain. Willis says the procedure, which has never before been performed in the United States, should ensure the aging cat has less pain.

(©2013 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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