Inuk will be missed

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kdrun76

Piranha
MFK Member
Mar 4, 2009
1,637
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CT
I am not sure this is the place for this, but...

Mystic Aquarium lost a Beluga whale today. I was there from 6pm last night until they opened at 9:00 this morning. What a night....


http://www.mysticaquarium.org/newsroom/press-releases/542-male-beluga-whale-passes-away

Male Beluga Whale Passes Away MYSTIC, Conn.– It is with great sadness that Mystic Aquarium, a division of Sea Research Foundation, Inc., reports that Inuk, the 28-year-old male beluga whale experiencing kidney failure for the past three weeks, unexpectedly passed away overnight. For the past two weeks, Inuk had been in stable condition.
“Despite the extraordinary efforts of aquarium staff, regular volunteers and additional volunteers from five different states, Inuk was unable to overcome the effects of extended kidney failure,” said Dr. Tracy Romano, senior vice president of research and zoological operations at Sea Research. “He will be missed by all. Inuk provided both staff and visitors with years of pleasure and educational inspiration. He was an iconic animal who captured the spirit of oceanic conservation and understanding.”

Aquarium veterinarians and researchers brought Inuk’s body to the University of Connecticut today, where they, along with staff from the Department of Pathobiology and Veterinary Science, will perform a necropsy to determine the cause of his kidney failure. The results of the necropsy will be available – at the earliest – in two weeks.
Inuk became ill on Friday, January 29, when he began showing a lack of interest in food. A blood test revealed a possible acute infection, further complicated by kidney failure. Since then, Mystic Aquarium’s animal care team had been working around the clock, giving Inuk supplemental fluids in an effort to clear his kidneys.
Mystic Aquarium is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), and is considered a leader among AZA-accredited institutions for its expertise in beluga and marine mammal care.
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It seems kind of silly... I walk past his tank a zillion times a day when I am there.... I stop and watch some times, other times I am too busy to look at the whales.

I have prepped his food, looked at his blood, tested his water.....The bonds that form are strange.

On one hand he was an old whale that did what every old whale in all of history has done, he died. And on the other hand.... my big white playful buddy just died. Whew....

This sucks.
 
Animals have a way of touching our hearts while they're here. It's good to know he won't ever be forgotten. Because you 2 alone will remember.
 
Man I just got up and immediately went to my e-mail to see if Tracey had sent any updates...

Must be they don't update on dead animals in the middle of the night...

It will be interesting to hear the necropsy results though.
 
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