Winter
Winter has inspired millions of people of all ages across the world.
Please email us if you would like to share a story of how Winter has made a difference in your life. We would love to hear it.
“Winter” is our most famous dolphin. You may have seen her featured on the NBC Today Show, CNN, BBC, or hundreds of newspapers around the world. Winter was one of the most difficult strandings we have had at CMA. Her story is a bittersweet realization of the dangers these animals face as a result of human activity in the wild.
At only three months of age, Winter found herself wrapped tightly in a crab trap line and was unable to escape. She was rescued from Mosquito Lagoon (near Cape Canaveral) and transported to CMA to begin a long rehabilitation. Unfortunately, Winter lost her entire tail as well as two vertebrae a result of the serious injuries that she had sustained.
Although her story is intriguing, it is also very rare, as many dolphins unfortunately die in monofilament and crab trap lines. Despite the odds against survival, Winter’s energy and ability to adapt to her new physical form has surpassed the expectations of many experts. Winter has done amazingly well in the short time since her stranding. She has completely healed, adapted to a new swim pattern, and learned to eat fish on her own…about twelve pounds a day! She is growing quickly, and now weighs in at 230 pounds!
Come and visit Winter…….she may have lost her tail, but she’ll capture your heart!
Progress on Winter’s New Tail
Dolphin prosthetics – what is the latest news?
The collaborative efforts of Hanger Prosthetics and Orthotics, Inc., a leading human prosthetics company, along with Dr. Mike Walsh, a leading marine mammal veterinarian, and CMA’s world-class marine mammal trainers, make for one well-thought-out plan of action. How (you might ask) does one go about preparing a dolphin for a prosthetic tail? It certainly is challenging: attaching a complete fluke and joint onto a young, inexperienced dolphin has never been done before, but it is a challenge we feel good about!
Over the course of several months, Winter has learned the correct body position to be fitted for a stretchy, plastic sleeve, one that is also used for human prosthetics. Her trainers have creatively fashioned a more form-fitting version of the sleeve – it works wonders although it looks strange to say the least. The sleeve, in its original form, will ultimately attach the prosthetic fluke to her peduncle. For now, the modification not only helps Winter to feel comfortable wearing it but also allows us to literally teach her how to use it.
Tail flukes are the powerhouse of the dolphin. To compensate for the absence of flukes, Winter utilizes her entire body in order to propel herself forward, moving from side-to-side like a shark. Behaviorally, our goal is to use the prosthetic as a cue or discriminative stimulus to swim in a normal up-and-down fashion, while still maintaining her ability to swim comfortably when the prosthetic is off.
In our latest sessions, we attempt to convey the idea that calm behavior is the name of the game; persuading a playful youngster to pay attention is like trying to get a pre-schooler to be studious. Winter’s “game” (that she is pitching to us) is to kick off the sleeve and swim just out of reach of her trainers for countless hours of entertainment. Of course, the most difficult obstacle thus far is almost humorous and a reminder to us all that the only plan is what Winter has in mind. So far, we think Winter and her trainers are on the same page.
