[Rhodes22-list] Successful Dolphin Rescue

[Jim White]

Not a lost cause at all Herb. The Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network are 
the folks who are responsible though- I would call their main office, and 
they can put it through to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), 
who have the actual lead and financial resources to handle such things, the 
problem is then usually delegated back to the TMMSN, often to field 
coordinators such as myself. Of course it's best to give a GPS of the 
animals location along with a physical description (if possible) such as 
marker 189 S of Baffin Bay etc...and of course a general description of the 
critter. The TMMSN main number is: 1-800-9MAMMAL . However the TSA should 
have called the appropriate entities!

Since this is the time of the season that cetaceans tend to strand along US 
Shorelines here are
  a few do's and dont's that I plagerized from TMMSN, but apply to most 
small to medium sized stranded marine mammals:
    * DO NOT return the animal to the sea- They are there because they are 
sick or injured, and can no longer swim
    * Keep people and pets away from the animal- Only 1 or 2 people are 
needed until help arrives. Do not leave the animal
    * Relieve pressure on the fins- by digging holes under them. To relieve 
pressure on the lungs, you can dig a pit under the animal and fill it with 
water
    * Keep the animal cool and wet- by splashing water on the skin. Avoid 
getting water in the blowhole
    * Apply wet towels or T-shirts and provide a shade- Keep the blowhole 
free of obstruction and don't cover the dorsal fin, flippers or tail
    * Apply Sunscreens or zinc oxide, NOT suntan oil- The dolphin's skin is 
very sensitive and can burn severely
    * Apply ice packs- to the dorsal fin, pectoral flippers, or flukes, but 
do not let the ice contact the skin directly
    * If the animal is in the surf, support it upright- Keep water out of 
the blowhole. If possible, move the animal into shallow water but keep it 
in the water
    * Be careful around the powerful tail and jaws

jw

At 12:15 PM 4/3/2005, you wrote:
>Jim,
>
>When my wife and I sailed our O'Day down the ICW your direction, we had an 
>interesting "encounter". Just a little ways south of Corpus, in the Baffin 
>Bay area, a pod of dolphins started following us. They followed us most of 
>the day, sometimes disappearing for 20-30 minutes, then reappearing. The 
>reason we knew it was the same pod the whole time was that one of the 
>dolphins had a thick piece of twine wrapped around her neck, in a way that 
>was obviously NOT going to come off on its own. It didn't seem to affect 
>her at all, but my wife and I knew that as time went on, it would become a 
>problem.We had no idea what to do, so we decided to call the Corpus 
>Christi aquarium. The lady that answered took our information, but I 
>wasn't confident that they would actually try to do anyting.
>
>How should something like that be handled? Or is it just a "lost cause?"
>
>Herb Parsons
>
>S/V O'Jure
>   1976 O'Day 25
>   Lake Grapevine, N TX
>
>S/V Reve de Papa
>   1971 Coronado 35
>   Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana Coast
>
> >>> jdwhite at utpa.edu 4/1/2005 9:06:24 AM >>>
>Here's a short media video of the critter we pulled out yesterday (see
>Dolphin Rescued from Backyard Harbor) :
>http://www.newschannel5.tv/
>
>I worked with the team from 6AM yesterday morning, and finally got home
>from Port Aransas about 1AM this morning. Now up again, collecting gear and
>tying up loose ends.... The animal was introduced into the rehab tank, and
>appears to be doing OK. If everything goes will they'll transport it back
>down here and release it in about six weeks.
>
>No sailing today...winds are NW over 35...maybe this weekend though. Right
>now, I just want to get through the day, have a couple of rums and sleep
>like rumplestiltskin...
>jw
>
>Jim White
>Le Menagerie
>www.lemenagerie.blogspot.com
>
>__________________________________________________
>Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>
>__________________________________________________
>Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list

Jim White
Le Menagerie
www.lemenagerie.blogspot.com