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Green (Chelonia mydas)
Stranding Location: Mount Pleasant, SC
Arrival Date: 07/24/2018
Age: Juvenile
Weight: 2.83 kg (6.2 pounds)
Case History
On Tuesday afternoon, this juvenile green sea turtle was caught on hook-and-line at the Pitt Street Bridge in Mt. Pleasant. Thankfully, Thomas Hodgin was in the vicinity and sprung to action! He knew the best thing to do was to contact South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR), and seek assistance vs. cutting the line and letting the turtle go. He brought the turtle into the shade and waited for SCDNR volunteer transporters Mary Pringle and Barb Gobien to arrive. Sea Turtle Care Center (STCC) staff met them outside and brought Nagini to the medical facility for the vet staff to check her out.
Please see official instructions for sea turtle hook removal from SCDNR.
Treatment
Nagini looked to be in great body condition. She didn’t have any barnacles growing on her shell, and her weight was healthy for a turtle her size. Staff immediately took an x-ray to see where exactly the hook was. Thankfully, the hook didn’t travel far and was able to be removed without surgery. Nagini was lightly sedated and after only 15 minutes the hook was removed! Nagini was placed on a routine course of antibiotics to ward off any opportunistic infection. Staff waited for her to 
fully wake up before moving her to her new temporary home.
Updates
July 28, 2018: Nagini has been doing great! The second she moved to a tank she became very active. The day after her arrival, staff offered some food. She wasn’t interested quite yet but she was pooping so much! Fecal gives us a good insight into what the turtle was eating prior to coming in and a chance to look for any plastic debris or parasites. Nagini made sure to give us a nice big sample to look through. A couple of days later she began eating fish and slowly started to eat her veggies. She stays fairly active in her tank and enjoys her new home.
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