Wounded caretta carettas receive treatment in Turkey's Çanakkale

Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University (ÇOMU) Sea Turtles Research Center Director Şükran Yalçın Özdilek said in order to solve the turtles’ feeding problem, they had tried this method under anesthesia for the first time in the world. 

“Two female turtles were found on July 20 on the coast of Gökçeada and they were brought to our center. They are now under treatment at our center and their treatment is continuing. Both had head injuries. One of them cannot dive down into the water and this is why she cannot find food at the bottom. These types [of turtles] find their food at the bottom of the sea. Probably she hit her head on a boat. The other’s condition is more serious. She has too many infections, especially in her eyes. The feeding tube directly goes to their stomachs from their noses. This has been tried, for the first time in the world, because they do not accept mouth feeding at the moment,” she said. 

Özdilek said the animals would be fed through the tubes until they regained their swallowing reflexes, adding, “Caretta carettas are under protection but there is still risk to their population. They are harmless creatures. They just eat a few fish. Their existence shows that the sea is healthy.”