thatgirl23
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Nov 3, 2007
July 28, 2016
We are saddened to announce the passing of Jenny, one of Discovery Cove’s bottlenose dolphins.
Jenny was diagnosed about 15 years ago with squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and frenulum, a form of oral cancer that is found in wild dolphins, as well as those at zoological facilities. The expert animal care and veterinary teams had been treating her with anti-cancer medication and supportive therapy, and recently the teams suspected that this cancer had metastasized and spread to other parts of her body.
Last week, Jenny started to experience a drastic and rapid decline in her health as a result of her illnesses. Because of the decline in her health and quality of life, the decision was made yesterday morning at around 4 a.m. to humanely euthanize her. She passed away surrounded by several members of the SeaWorld family that she had helped to inspire for more than three decades.
Jenny was estimated to be 38 years old, which is considered to be an older dolphin. She had been a member of the SeaWorld family for more than 35 years and helped to inspire millions of guests during that time.
Jenny was the first dolphin to arrive at Discovery Cove in 2000, and the team knew right away that she was special. She was a “regular” in Discovery Cove’s guest interactions, which, according to the trainers and animal care team that were around her daily, seemed to be one of her favorite activities.
“Jenny loved attention, so when she wasn’t filling the role of ‘nanny’ with the pod and spending time with the calves, she was hanging out in the shallows looking for ways to interact and engage with guests,” said Kym, an Assistant Curator at Discovery Cove. “She had such a laid back personality and really enjoyed just hanging out with the trainers. And because she loved the interaction programs, she always knew what needed to be done, which is why we often joked that she ‘trained the trainers.’”
Kym added, “Jenny was a dolphin that you just automatically fell in love with, whether you were a trainer or a guest. She was without a doubt an inspiration to everyone who got to interact with her and she will be greatly missed by many people.”
A full necropsy will be conducted to determine the cause of her recent drastic decline in health.
Posted here.
We are saddened to announce the passing of Jenny, one of Discovery Cove’s bottlenose dolphins.
Jenny was diagnosed about 15 years ago with squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and frenulum, a form of oral cancer that is found in wild dolphins, as well as those at zoological facilities. The expert animal care and veterinary teams had been treating her with anti-cancer medication and supportive therapy, and recently the teams suspected that this cancer had metastasized and spread to other parts of her body.
Last week, Jenny started to experience a drastic and rapid decline in her health as a result of her illnesses. Because of the decline in her health and quality of life, the decision was made yesterday morning at around 4 a.m. to humanely euthanize her. She passed away surrounded by several members of the SeaWorld family that she had helped to inspire for more than three decades.
Jenny was estimated to be 38 years old, which is considered to be an older dolphin. She had been a member of the SeaWorld family for more than 35 years and helped to inspire millions of guests during that time.
Jenny was the first dolphin to arrive at Discovery Cove in 2000, and the team knew right away that she was special. She was a “regular” in Discovery Cove’s guest interactions, which, according to the trainers and animal care team that were around her daily, seemed to be one of her favorite activities.
“Jenny loved attention, so when she wasn’t filling the role of ‘nanny’ with the pod and spending time with the calves, she was hanging out in the shallows looking for ways to interact and engage with guests,” said Kym, an Assistant Curator at Discovery Cove. “She had such a laid back personality and really enjoyed just hanging out with the trainers. And because she loved the interaction programs, she always knew what needed to be done, which is why we often joked that she ‘trained the trainers.’”
Kym added, “Jenny was a dolphin that you just automatically fell in love with, whether you were a trainer or a guest. She was without a doubt an inspiration to everyone who got to interact with her and she will be greatly missed by many people.”
A full necropsy will be conducted to determine the cause of her recent drastic decline in health.
Posted here.
