Vets successfully remove hoard of coins from sea turtle

A team of five Thai veterinarian surgeons at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University, on Monday successfully removed 915 coins from the stomach of a 25-year-old sea turtle, the first surgery of its kind.

The sea turtle named Omsin - piggy bank in Thai and weighing 59 kg has been swallowing 5 kg of items thrown into her pool for good luck, which eventually limited her ability to swim.

The green sea turtle, living at a conservation centre in Sriracha, Chonburi, east of the Thai capital of Bangkok, had been finding it hard to swim normally due to the weight of the coins.

The vets said they believed the seven-hour-long operation was the world's first such surgery.

"We think it will take about a month to ensure she will fully recover," said Nantarika Chansue.

She also said that the turtle would need six more months of physical therapy. Some of the coins removed from the female turtle were corroded.

"The coins came from many countries, mainly from Asia," said Nuntarika Chansoe.

Tossing coins into ponds and ponds with turtles is believed by many to bring good luck, longevity, as the animals can live well over 100 years.

The turtle was sent from a local turtle pond in Sriracha, a town 120 kilometres south-east of Bangkok, to the Thai navy's Sea Turtle Conservation Centre nearby after the local operator closed down in June, 2016.

In February, veterinarians at the Bangkok university asked the navy to send Omsin to its animal hospital for a check-up, after the team found the turtle to be swimming sideways without using her left leg.

"At first I thought the turtle might have been paralysed. But an X-ray and a CT scan revealed a massive chunk of objects," Nuntarika said. 

"It was quite a difficult and challenging task," said Pasakorn Briksawan, one of the surgeons operating on Omsin. 

"After we removed the coins one by one, it became obvious the turtle was breathing much better," Nuntarika added.

Once Omsin recuperates, she will be sent back to the navy before being released back to nature.

 

Source: DPA International