CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Staff at the Texas State Aquarium Wildlife Rescue are working around the clock to treat a dolphin that was stranded on Padre Island.
The Aquarium alongside the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network were called out to Padre Island last Wednesday to rescue the dolphin. The team at the refuge is now running tests to see how the seven-foot, 350 pound male dolphin ended up on the beach. They said they have detected a lung infection.
Jesse Gilbert, chief operating officer at the Aquarium, said once the dolphin is medically cleared the next step is to find a pod in the wild for the mammal to join.
"It's a very, very tight community of dolphins, so that will be the next set of challenges once we get past the medical," Gilbert said. "Can we find a pod possibly this animal would fit into?"
Gilbert said the dolphin is expected to be in their care for at least six months.
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