In veterinary medicine, we often describe sea turtles as “sturdy.” These creatures can handle medications and treatments with remarkable tenacity, taking what we can offer and stepping in where medicine alone cannot — by fighting back.

My name is Dr. Jamie Torres, and I am the vice president of veterinary care at the South Carolina Aquarium. From venomous snakes to wily river otters, my work demands adaptability — every animal presents unique medical challenges and their own capacity for resilience. But after 18 years in this field, sea turtles continue to stand out to me. This “sturdiness” in the face of illness and injury makes their care especially rewarding, a testament to both their will to survive and the power of veterinary medicine. Loaf, a juvenile Kemp’s ridley sea turtle, embodied this strength to a tee.

Will you help us to match sea turtles’ resilience with top-notch medical care?

Loaf arrived with one fishhook embedded in the back of the mouth and another deeper within the esophagus. Hook-and-line patients are among the more routine cases we see at the Aquarium, and in many instances, these sea turtles are otherwise healthy and eligible for release just weeks after hook removal. Loaf seemed no different. Two successful extractions put this little Kemp’s on the usual track: hook, remove, release.

But three days after admit, something wasn’t right.

Loaf’s health declined with alarming speed, a routine hook removal suddenly snowballing into something dire. We caught the early signs of pneumonia, quickly responding with repeat radiographs and treatments. But complications mounted. In just 48 hours, Loaf lost two of her/his 8.5 pounds.

At this point, we were operating in a state of critical triage. Loaf required twice-daily evaluations to keep up with her/his rapid changes in health, with treatments including antibiotics, antifungals and insulin. As Loaf spiraled toward multi-organ system failure, we stepped in where organs like the kidneys couldn’t, flushing out toxins every day with fluids equating to 6% of Loaf’s body weight. In my professional history, I have never administered such a high volume of fluids to such a small animal. But when Loaf’s body fought, we fought harder.

It took nearly 10 days to stabilize Loaf’s blood glucose levels back within normal parameters, and nearly three weeks to finally make it out of the woods.

As a species, sea turtles are resilient. Not every patient could have withstood the intensity of these treatments…  but Loaf did.

As a veterinarian, you never want an animal’s care to be hindered by budgetary or resource constraints. No lifesaving treatment should be delayed by logistics, especially when swift medical intervention can mean the difference between survival and loss. I’m grateful that the Aquarium prioritizes this urgency — this “act first” mentality that ensures sea turtles like Loaf receive the emergent care they need to return to the wild as thriving, reproductive members of their species. This responsiveness kept Loaf alive and is made possible by your support.

Loaf’s steady flow of insulin injections, daily bloodwork and nebulization treatments made this little Kemp’s one of the most rewarding cases we’ve had. Just in February, Loaf was released offshore, returning to the wild where s/he belongs.

This year, the Aquarium celebrates 25 years of veterinary medicine; 25 years of “acting first” and thinking on our feet to save sea turtles like Loaf; 25 years of bettering the species as a whole. The next decades depend on continued community support and stand to be a critical expansion of the groundwork laid and impact made since we opened in 2000.

Will you help us to make the next 25 years an era of even greater impact for sea turtle rehabilitation?

Any opportunity to save even just one sea turtle is critical in propelling the survival of the entire species forward. It’s what draws me to this field. Your support can propel this even further, making all the difference for sea turtles like Loaf in providing the necessary care to match their sturdiness flipper-to-toe.

Published April 14, 2025