LafeberVet Barron Sea Turtle Program Application

Course overview

Presented in conjunction with the Wildlife Disease Association, this webinar will outline the regulatory, anatomical, diagnostic, and therapeutic considerations involved in sea turtle rehabilitation. Sea turtle rehabilitation in the United States emphasizes the need for compliance with state and federal rules, often requiring special licensure. Seven sea turtle species are typically threatened or endangered, with anthropogenic threats driving conservation and clinical care efforts. Anatomy details cover the carapace, plastron, and shell structure, including scute patterns and bone derivation. Diagnostics prioritize a thorough physical exam, baseline temperature, imaging, blood work, and fecal analysis, with careful choice of sampling sites and anticoagulants to minimize stress. Critical care stresses graded fluid therapy, rewarming, analgesia, and cautious antibiotic use, while supportive care emphasizes rehydration, nutrition, and, if needed, enteric or parenteral feeding. Therapeutics discuss anesthesia protocols, multimodal analgesia, and a broad empiric antimicrobial/antifungal plan. Common presentations include fibropapillomatosis, plastic ingestion, buoyancy disorders, and trauma from human activities, all of which influence prognosis and potential euthanasia.