Srinagar, May 17 -- A few years ago, I stood inside a small enclosure at Dachigam National Park, staring into the half-open mouth of a Himalayan black bear. The bear was sedated, its breathing slow but steady. Its body was battered.

The bear was rescued from the edge of a village after days of roaming, injured and starving. But the real crisis was inside its mouth.

One of its molars was infected, a deep abscess pushing against the bone. It couldn't eat. That's what had brought it here. Not the limp in its leg or the wounds on its back, but a toothache.

I'm a wildlife veterinarian, and more specifically, a wildlife dentist. It's a role few people in Kashmir know exists. But in recent years, as we've rescued more wild animals from shrink...