Turtle

Bob, the Turtle at Two Oceans Aquarium, leaves everyone green with envy watching his scrub down, which he thoroughly enjoys and gladly leans into.

 

Cape Town, South Africa – Bob the Green Turtle has been at the Two Oceans Aquarium since November 2014. He was found severely injured at the De Hoop Nature Reserve.

After his rescue, his injuries were assessed, and it didn’t look good. Bob was underweight for his age, weighing only 16.6kgs. He had severe bruising and a possible fracture of the bottom shell known as the plastron. He also had a loss of scales and exposed bone.

His name was inspired by the fact that he was too buoyant and “bobbed” around the tank. After a few days of being rehydrated, Bob’s rehabilitation slowly started. Due to his injuries, the team at Two Oceans Aquarium knew he had a long road to recovery ahead.

His condition worsened over the weeks, but the team were determined to save him.

“Bob’s condition suddenly deteriorated. The turtle was starting to show severe abnormal neurological signs and having difficulty breathing. It continually circled to the right and had lost sight in both eyes.”

“Bob required intensive care with tube feeding, daily wound care and lots of fluids to help maintain hydration while out of the water. The fracture had developed an infection, and it was suspected that bacteria had spread to the blood and caused an inflammation of the brain (encephalitis). A blood culture was performed, which dictated a change in medication.”

After months of treatment, Bob started to recover well. He began to sleep at the bottom of the tank, meaning his buoyancy issues had resolved. It still appeared that Bob was blind, but he was doing much better. Then in January of 2015, three full months after his rescue, Bob pooped out a colourful collection of harmful plastic and balloons.

“Turtles often mistake floating plastic for food. Marine debris from discarded plastics is building up in our oceans and poses a significant threat to turtles and other wildlife. Ingested plastic causes bowel obstructions and has caused fatalities in whales, birds and turtles while many other marine animals are at risk.” – Two Oceans Aquarium

Bob started to recover faster, and his eyesight gradually returned. He gained some much-needed weight, and his fractures were almost unidentifiable. Since 2015, Bob has become an ambassador for turtles.

“Bob loves life, he doesn’t care about being as fast or feisty as the other turtles, he just chills and has the best time cruising around the exhibit, or scratching himself on a rock. Taking it slow and going with the flow, Bob is a very chilled turtle.” – Talitha Noble

Recently, the aquarium shared a video clip of Bob getting a scrub-down in his tank. The diver, Simon, can be seen brushing his shell, clearing off any algae that have settled on him. As you will see in the clip below, Bob loves his scrubs.

He can be seen anchoring himself to the bottom of the tank and leaning into Simon as he scrubs away the algae. Take a look at the sweet moment below.

When Bob is ready, the Aquarium hopes to release him back into the big vast ocean so he can live a long and full life.

The Aquarium wishes to educate people on how to better protect turtles in the wild. All it takes is a few simple actions which can save other turtles from going through Bob’s ordeal.

What can you do to help turtles like Bob?

  • Say NO to balloons.
  • Reduce your dependency on plastic by saying NO to single-use plastic bags.
  • Have a look at our environmental campaigns, including Balloon Buster and Rethink the Bag to learn more.
  • Choose sustainably sourced seafood.
  • Donate to our turtle rehabilitation programme.


Sources: Twitter / Two Oceans Aquarium 1 / 2 
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About the Author

Tyler Leigh Vivier is a writer for Good Things Guy.

Her passion is to spread good news across South Africa with a big focus on environmental issues, animal welfare and social upliftment. Outside of Good Things Guy, she is an avid reader and lover of tea.

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