Tina is our sub-adult Loggerhead who was found floating, lethargic, and emaciated off manor beach in New Port Richey. She joined our rehab family on April 12th, 2012, and over the last year we have seen many ups and downs with Tina, since she is such a unique case. Over the course of the last few months, “Tina’s” glucose continued to maintain a higher range, from 125-175. We discontinued transporting samples over to Morton Plant for a high-range glucose test, and in the fall we began experimenting with a new method of treatment (per Dr. Walsh). Instead of giving her a shot of insulin, and seeing how long she could maintain a high (yet acceptable) range before administering another shot, we were instead taking readings every morning, and giving her a shot of insulin (the dosage is positively correlated with her glucose level) and seeing what dosage it will take to keep her at a normal range, before we attempted to back off on the insulin once again.
By the beginning of winter, Dr. Walsh did not see the results he was looking for, and he again switched up his treatment method. We began checking her glucose in the morning, and then administering a shot of insulin. We also checked her glucose in the evening, in order to note the drop in her glucose (the effect of the insulin) from the morning reading. We also began slowly backing off on her diet to see if her glucose level will drop as well. This was to show that her glucose issues had been weight and diet induced rather than her actually having an additional problem internally (i.e. with her pancreas). On Friday, January 25nd, Tina was moved from her shallow pool (OT-8) to a deeper pool (OT-3). In doing this, Dr. Walsh believed that she may be able to maintain her glucose level because this pool has more area to swim around, thus keeping a lower glucose level by increasing her exercise. Her glucose was being checked once in the morning, she was receiving a very small 0.02 units of insulin and began maintaining a range from 100-125. We continued to work on her treatment plan with Dr. Walsh for the next few months, and with her change in pool and decreased diet, Tina began to consistently maintain this range of 100-125. Dr. Walsh finally managed to back Tina’s insulin administration down to 0.01 units, and she was transported to our new sea turtle rehab area on Monday, may 10th for continued care while we waited on clearance for her release. During Dr. Walsh’s most recent visit on June 14th, our challenging girl, Tina, was finally cleared for her long-awaited release!
