The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience
By sponsoring the care of sea turtle Hei Hei you'll be supporting the Sea Turtle Hospital and the work we do to research, rehab and release these amazing animals. Your sponsorship can provide Hei Hei important medical supplies, nutritious food, critical exams and other types of care provided while at the Sea Turtle Hospital.
Suggested amount to sponsor the care of a turtle is $50. We appreciate gifts above $50 as well.
For joining us, you'll receive:
You can even give a turtle sponsorship as a gift!
Please allow 2 weeks for mailed certificate to arrive. Emailed certificates sent within 3-4 business days.
For questions about sponsoring, please contact wlmb@whitney.ufl.edu.
So Feisty!
Hei Hei has been a Disney Sidekick favorite since arriving at our hospital on May 16. On arrival Hei Hei was in good body condition and bloodwork values were within normal limits, but Hei Hei did present with a mild Fibropapilloma (FP) tumor burden. He/she was very stressed and very feisty, which made handling a little more difficult compared to the sicker and/or weaker patients that we are used to.
We cannot blame him/her for being so feisty, because of the reason Hei Hei came into our care. Hei Hei was found in Ames Park in Ormond Beach struggling at the water’s surface with a severe monofilament entanglement around his/her right rear flipper.
On intake, staff acted quickly to remove the tightly wrapped monofilament. The flipper was very swollen and likely painful. Dr. B gave strict orders for wound care, which included using medical grade honey, AKA Medihoney, and therapeutic laser treatment. The therapeutic laser is a non-invasive healing method that uses laser energy to help damaged tissue. It reduces pain and inflammation and expedites healing for a wide range of acute and chronic pain conditions.
We are happy to report that Hei Hei has responded well to the intensive treatments and he/she has been able to use that rear flipper well when swimming in the rehab tanks. We are hopeful that things will continue to progress, so Dr. B will not have to amputate.
Now that things are moving along in a positive direction for Hei Hei, we will start the tumor removal process while closely monitoring the rear flipper mobility and healing process.