Rescued baby dolphin dies of pneumonia

BROWNSVILLE — A dolphin rescued from South Padre Island last month died of pneumonia, not as a result of bite wounds it sustained in a shark attack.
The dolphin, named Bo Jingles, was discovered by fishermen near Beach Access No. 6 on Dec. 21. He died Jan. 6.
The mammal, in weak condition when found, had been cared for at the University of Texas-Pan American Coastal Studies Lab before being transported to the Texas State Aquarium Sea Lab in Corpus Christi. It was later taken to the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network facility in Galveston.
Bo Jingles died unexpectedly, said Lea Walker, regional coordinator for the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network in Corpus Christi. A necropsy was performed and it was determined that pneumonia in the lungs was the cause of death, she said.
“The lungs are what did it. It (the pneumonia) was too far advanced for us to fix,” Walker said.
She said those treating Bo Jingles didn’t know how long he had had pneumonia or how he contracted it. Officials believe the pneumonia could have affected how fast the dolphin could swim when it was trying to get away from the shark.
“He was a tough little guy. He fought,” Walker said. “The shark bites we could have fixed. Those were doable.”
Since his rescue, Bo Jingles had been tube fed, nursed and at times was able to eat small fish.
Walker said it is not unusual for animals to get pneumonia, noting that approximately 90 percent of the mammals that come to the TMMSN have pneumonia.
Staff there had a hard time dealing with Bo Jingles’ death because it was unexpected, Walker said. Although staff members were aware Bo Jingles had pneumonia, they did not realize how deep it had gotten into his lungs.
“He just touched our lives,” Walker said. “We hugged, cried and laughed.”