Rehabilitated and Released

A student dressed in red leans over the side of a white boat, holding a sea turtle just before releasing it into the blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
Photo by Tom Thompson

January 21, 2022

Squirt, the last of a group of cold-stunned sea turtles rehabilitated and released into the Gulf of Mexico by the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies in December, received excellent care under Mississippi State University veterinarians Dr. Debra Moore and Dr. Christa Barrett. Second year Doctor of Veterinary Medicine student Jessica Sparks of Seneca, South Carolina, second from left, was proud to participate in the release and to give turtle #182 the swimmingly good name of Squirt. Through its partnership with IMMS, MSU is one of only two universities in the nation to offer marine animal rescue training to all veterinary medicine students.