Third CT scan shows Kale the turtle is improving

May 30—A third CT scan showed the health of Kale, the Cook Museum of Natural Science's Kemp's ridley sea turtle, continues to improve, a veterinarian reported Wednesday.

Dr. Chris Keller, a veterinarian with Chattanooga's Tennessee Aquarium, did the checkup and scan Tuesday at Decatur Morgan Hospital with museum staff. Kale received previous CT scans last July and in January.

"We're making progress," Keller said. "He still has a way to go, but, in general, Kale's condition continues to improve. He feels totally fine. He's eating well; he's gaining weight."

Kelly Geck, recently promoted to Cook Museum's Animal Care manager, said Kale made the trip from the museum's off-site facility to the hospital and back in roughly 45 minutes to an hour.

Three Animal Care staffers escorted the turtle for his checkup. Kale rides in a transport container with a memory foam-like pad. They place a wet towel on top of Kale to keep him wet. They also carry saltwater from his tank and ointments to keep his flippers and eyes moist. They add these items only if they need to on a long trip.

"He's a pretty easy sea turtle," Geck said. "Other sea turtles tend to be fairly stressed out when they're moving around. I haven't seen Kale go into his typical stress behavior when we are moving him around."

Geck said the hospital tech was ready so they could get Kale back into this saltwater aquarium as soon as possible.

Kale shows he is stressed or uneasy by trying to get away from the situation. Geck said he was calm until the table he was sitting on started moving into the CT scanner.

"He said, 'OK, I don't really like this so I'm out of here,'" she said. "But then the Animal Care staff was able to calm him down and control him. He then stayed still the whole time while he was in the CT machine."

Geck said the turtle was more stressed out during the vehicle ride to and from the hospital than he was while in the CT scan.

"We have been very lucky with Kale," Geck said. "He's a good turtle with a very good temperament — very easy."

Cook Museum first adopted the 42-pound male sea turtle from the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center in 2020. The center originally acquired Kale, who is now close to 10 years old, as a juvenile when he was found off the coast of Chesapeake Bay with a fishing hook protruding from his neck.

Kale had several surgeries that left him with several ailments. Previous checkups showed some lesions on his carapace, the back part of the shell, which was severely infected.

The vet also diagnosed the turtle with osteomyelitis, or bone infection, a condition that often cripples humans.

Keller said Kale only has one opening left in his shell and it's right in the middle of his back.

"We have some tests in which we will get the results in the next seven to 10 days," Keller said. "That will tell us if we're still dealing with a bacterial infection, which is how this all began."

Kale developed a fistula, an abnormal connection of two body cavities or a body cavity and the skin, in his throat. However, Keller said that issue is no longer a concern.

Kale lives in Cook Museum's offsite holding facility, where the five Animal Care staff members work together to provide weekly treatments. These treatments include giving antibiotics through injections and topical creams on the lesions, which Keller said are "to make (Kale) feel better."

Keller said the important thing is Kale's condition must be completely under control before he goes back into the 15,000-gallon saltwater aquarium exhibit.

"But it won't be too long now, although I can't speculate what the timing is going to be," Keller said. "It's all up to Kale at this point."

Keller said he's "not in a position to give a hard date" on when Kale can return to Cook Museum and his exhibit.

"I don't want to disappoint anybody, and I certainly don't want to rush Kale into the exhibit until he's totally fine," Keller said. "He required very direct care on this one location and, once he's in the exhibit, it's going to be difficult to accomplish this care."

The Endangered Species Act of 1970 and the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species classify the Kemp's ridley sea turtle as critically endangered. Researchers attribute that status to beach erosion caused by storms and land development, plastic debris in the water and fishing nets meant for other species.

— bayne.hughes@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2432