Visit to the Turtle Hospital in Marathon

About a two blocks down from the Marina is the Marathon Turtle rescue and hospital.  I attended one of their educational tours.  They also speak at local schools and organizations, I would love to have something like this at home.  Presently the hospital has 23 turtles. Four to five of them are permanent residents because they will never be self sufficient enough to be released in the wild.  I learned that there are seven species of sea turtles in the world. Two of those seven can only be found off the coast of Australia and New Zealand.  The turtles that can be found in the Keys are; The Loggerhead who eats shrimp, lobster and conch can weigh up to 300 pounds. The Green eats mainly sea grasses and can weigh up to 500 pounds. He is named after the green fat in his body.  The Hawksbill eats mainly sponges and can weigh up to 150 pounds. The Leatherback feeds mainly on jellyfish and is the largest reptile alive weighing up to 2000 pounds!  Finally the Kemps Ridley eats mainly crabs and shrimp and can weigh up to 100 pounds.  All five of these turtles are ENDANGERED!  There are several threats to turtle survival in the Keys.  Fishing line, rope from lobster and crab traps, boat hits, oil spills, coastal development that destroys their nesting areas, intestinal impaction, and Fibropapilloma tumors. Because the Leatherback feeds mainly on jellyfish and plastic bags in the water resemble a floating jellyfish the result is impaction and death.  Because cigarette buts resemble the color of shrimp they are a hazard.  Those turtles that feed on sea grasses may also ingest pieces of garbage thrown into waters by man and caught in the grasses.  We must remember that much of what we throw in or allow to go into our sewers, and rivers eventually ends up in our oceans so we must all be more vigilant.  If you would like to learn more about the hospital and or support their efforts visit www.turtlehospitalstore.com

                                                                Examination and X-ray

Another view of the X-ray room

            Surgery room - They are hoping to purchase a heated table to reduce trauma to the turtle

Turtles do not breath automatically like humans because they only breathe when they surface. Oxygen must be hand pumped into the turtle while they are in surgery    
                   

 This little turtle had an impaction. Impaction's and trauma cause the turtle to become a floater, meaning they cannot dive for safety or feeding. She has actually learned to wrap her flipper around the toy to keep her down in the water. If not found and corrected they starve or are killed by predators. Impaction's are treated with Metamucil, beano for the gas and other intestine flushing medicines. If successful they will regain their ability to dive and be released in 3 months to a year depending on the severity of the impaction.

                      These are individual tanks for turtles that just come in or are very ill.  Green turtles are those that suffer from the tumors. The tumors will blind them and grow so large they cannot use their flippers. The tumors cause a sever drop in red blood cells. The red count must be increased before surgery can take place to remove the tumors.  Unfortunately they have found that the virus that causes the tumors is contagious and it looks like it is being caused by pollution.

 The netting over the small tanks keeps any animal such as a raccoon from getting to the iddy biddy turtles.

 This is a syndrome known as Bubble Butt - no kidding.  It is caused by a direct hit to the shell by boats causing deformities of the shell. Since the spine is connected to the shell this turtle is a permanent resident as he cannot dive without assistance. A weight has been glued to his back to help him get around a little better.

 This turtle is also a permanent resident. He is paralyzed from the back end, including back flippers from a boat hit.  You can see the weight glued to his back. This allows him to float straight rather than be head down all of the time.

                     A view of more of the tanks and the large pool area for the larger residents

                         This is a miracle turtle. He was found wrapped up in a lobster trap which caused him to loose one flipper. While tangled he was attacked by a shark that took off his other flipper and caused bite injuries. He is recovering and has learned to swim with two flippers.

             If you look closely you can see the tumors on the back of his head, and over his eyes.

More stories from Marathon:Time Flys when your having fun

Ever wonder what you would do with your evenings if you lived on a boat? Well of course you can read and if you have satellite you can watch TV. There are chores to do just as you have at home and you can just relax on the deck of your boat and enjoy your surroundings. Not enough action for you? How about a cold drink or two while visiting new and old friends on their boats; Blue Angel, White House, Out Reach and Second Fantasy. Or you can do a little bar/restaurant hopping on your dingy to various happy hours and or dinner at the local hang outs that enjoy great music and specials every night. Fishing is also a great option, We fished on Sisters creek and ventured out to the beach where the creek meets the ocean. Then there is more eating at the marina potluck and then again with the AGLCA group,(the loopers).  So I guess I am letting you know there is as much activity or lack there of that you can choose from depending on where you plan to stay and your energy level.  Living on the water and on land really is similar.

Tom and I and Peanut at Berdines bar and restaurant. All the restaurant's here are dog friendly

Sunset from Berdines bar and restaurant

The Chici Tiki at City Marina - home of Yoga, Saturday night jam sessions, knot tying classes and just hanging out

Tues., Feb. 6th - Wer'e still here!

We are still at the City Marina in Marathon, hoping to leave in the morning headed toward Miami. Weather and work on the boat have caused most of the delay but all is good because we were able to meet up with stepson Nate and his wife Steph who stopped in for a few days in the Keys on their way to Barbados for vacation. I will post a few short stories from our stay in Marathon. Here is the first;

Our car rental experience:
We decided to rent a car the first weekend her to visit Key West and do some major re-provisioning.  The airport is about 3.5 miles away.  On Friday, January 27th, I took the city bus to the airport only to find that I did not have my credit card to finalize the rental.  Tom had misplaced his and borrowed mine the day before and I didn't get it put back in my wallet.  They would not take cash so I had to walk back to the marina for my credit card. Now remember it is 3.5 miles and the temp outside is 80. Tom met me half way on his bike, bringing his card instead of mine. When I got back to the airport, now very hot and sweaty, the gal said she was not supposed to take the card because my name was not on it. I must have looked pretty uncomfortable and as if I was going to explode because she looked at me and said. I think I will make an exception in this case.  The only small car they had left was a red BMW!  A beautiful car but not really a good choice for carrying wood, four golf cart batteries and lots of groceries. To be sure we were very very careful with it!  On Saturday we drove to Key West.  Walked around then settled in at Mallory Square to watch the sunset. About 4:30 the square filled with vendors and street performers. A scene you do not want to miss  if you visit Key West.  Tom and I sat next to a young vendor selling coconuts. He used a machete to chop them open for you to drink the water. The young man recently moved here from Ghana and seemed to enjoy talking with Tom, offering him a free coconut.  I had recently read an article about the health benefits of the coconut water so was anxious to taste it. Not bad. Our evening ended watching the sunset while listening to reggae music. Awesome day!

                                              Fat Freddies frozen drink selection in the keys

                                           One of many street entertainers at Mallory Square

                                                     Entrance to Mallory Square

                                 This entertainer made the most tips because his dog went around, took the dollars
                                 from your hand and put them in the bucket. Everyone just wanted to see the dog
                                 perform thus more money for the entertainer

                               The crowd increased as sunset neared. Of course we ended up sitting next to a
                                couple from Indianapolis - how funny is that.

                                                          Sunset at Mallory Square

                                                       Tom's new friend from Ghana

                                                                  Self explanatory

              This island directly in front of Mallory Square is only accessed by water and is exclusive
             for people such as Arnold S. Oprah and a few other stars and a couple of political figures