Photo of CiCi's kayak rescue provided by Nina and Laurence Cook, the citizens who found and rescued the turtle

4/18/2010  This turtle was found by a kayaker off Manasota Key yesterday evening, lethargic and not diving.  Turtle has bone lesions on both the carapace and plastron, and is very thin.  Initial diagnostics show dehydration, but no other obvious abnormalities and turtle has been started on antibiotics.  CiCi has been placed in a small tank with shallow water and is getting around well.  S/he ate a few squid heads this morning, which is a good sign.  4/24  CiCi has been moved into a larger rehabilitation pool and is swimming and eating well.  Turtle has some deep lesions to the bone of the carapace that will require aggressive wound care and healing time, but appears to be a good candidate for successful rehabilitation.  5/6  CiCi is doing very well.  She is eating great and slowly gaining weight.  The wounds on the carapace are starting to heal up, but she still has a high white blood cell count and remains on antibiotics.  5/23  CiCi is eating well and wounds are healing, but the turtle still has a long way to go.  Turtle is showing a delayed skin reaction on her neck, possibly due to frostbite before she stranded, but this is healing as well. 6/8  CiCi continues to heal — the wound on her neck is looking a bit ugly, but these often look worse before getting better and it is clearly undergoing active healing.  Turtle continues to eat very well and bloodwork is generally stable.  6/8  CiCi continues to heal — the wound on her neck is looking a bit ugly, but these often look worse before getting better and it is clearly undergoing active healing.  Turtle continues to eat very well and bloodwork is generally stable.  6/22 CiCi's wounds are still in the process of healing. A medical paste was recently packed into the wounds to promote healing and prevent infection. CiCi  remains on antibiotics but is eating very well and is maintaining a healthy weight.  7/25 Wounds are healing well.  Animal continues to improve.  9/7 Applying for release. Wounds are all healed and animal is ready to be released! 9/20 Cici was released! Read the story here.