Last week, a group of the Rescue Team, including volunteers and staff, drove down to Long Island, New York for a special release.

The Cross Sound Ferry was supportive in facilitating our vehicles and passengers, including our special cargo of endangered sea turtles, for our safe passage to Long Island.

Once in New York, we drove over to the southern side to release the turtles into the Atlantic Ocean, where the temperature was perfect and there was no risk of them getting 'stuck' in Long Island Sound where cold stunning also occurs.  Staff from the Riverhead Foundation lent their support by coordinating with the beach in Hampton Bays, NY for a release site and spending their valuable time with us making sure everything went smoothly.

Six turtles were released.  Above, selected animal health department staff and rescue volunteers who spent countless hours caring for these turtles prepare for release.  I love the smiles on their faces!  And the turtles flapping their flippers in anticipation of an ocean return.

Release!

Above, a few of the turtles race down the beach.  #169, last turtle in the back right, was a special case in that he had a former injury of a broken femur.  There was limited movement of the flipper and radiographs showed a likely fracture.  A CT scan confirmed that this was an old and already healed fracture that did not require any treatment from us.  It is amazing how well wild animals can heal on their own.  He did have many abrasions and necrotic areas of his head and carapace that required extra care throughout his cold stun treatment.  None of this stopped him from being the first turtle in the water!

Guess who else was released?  After a miraculous recovery, #25 'Rizzoli' was healthy again!  He began his journey with us on a ventilator and in extremely critical condition.  You can read about his comeback here.

#25 was a fighter!  He ended up being one of the few ridleys that had to be placed on a diet and even though he was the smallest turtle in our care at the end, he had the biggest personality.  It was an honor watching him go back into the water.

#66 was another interesting patient.  He developed flipper lameness and joint swellings that required us to use some alternative treatments such as laser therapy (pictured above,) and acupuncture.

But that lameness and swelling resolved as a result of antibiotics, pain management, physical therapy and the treatments mentioned above and he also joined in this release.  This is a great shot just before he enters the water.

The release team!  We couldn't have taken care of so many turtles this year without all these people.  And these folks represent just a fraction of the total effort.  Thank you to all the volunteers and staff from other departments and organizations (including Julika from the Riverhead Foundation above in red).

Releases are an exciting time for all involved.  We still have 7 more turtles in our care, most of which will be released soon as well.  This group will have satellite tags applied to their carapaces in addition to the normal tagging we do.  We'll let you know how that release goes and how to track those satellite tagged turtles!

~Kerry

After our last release we still have 14 turtles in our care. This is the time of year that the majority of turtles still in our hospital have many clinical concerns. Most of our followers are aware that we will do anything to get these animals back to good health so they can be released back into the wild. This includes the “non-traditional” treatments such as laser therapy and acupuncture.

Two of the three turtles getting acupuncture right now are due to lameness issues.

Tuzigoot (#113), one of our Kemp's ridley sea turtles, had another round of acupuncture in the Aquarium Medical Center yesterday. In the video you can see the needles at different points that are used to help stimulate the muscle in the jaw. Then acupuncturist Claire Mcmanus palpates and massages the turtle.




Upon being returned to the water by Erin, a rescue team member, you can see how wide the turtle is able to open its mouth in order to eat a squid ring. Up until about a week ago this turtle was only able to eat guts of squid and fish by "sucking" it in through an opening about 3 cm wide between the upper and lower jaw.

As long as the turtle is able to continue to eat well, the outlook is very good!
-Adam

(Read the previous post about Tuzigoot's acupuncture here!)

One of our turtles, #113(Tuzigoot) is still listed as one of our critical animals. The turtle is having difficulties opening its jaw wide enough to consume food. Upon initial assessment by X-rays and palpation nothing abnormal was found.