Rescued dolphin still
in guarded condition

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Star-Bulletin staff

A 4-month-old spotted dolphin that was rescued on Christmas Day remained in guarded condition yesterday, battling pneumonia.

"The good news is that she's still with us," said Margaret Akamine, protected-species coordinator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's fisheries program in the Pacific. "We're taking it an hour at a time."

The 30-pound female dolphin is being cared for at the Marine Mammal Research rehabilitation facility at Kaneohe Marine Corps Base. Veterinarians are administering emergency care, including antibiotics, to fight the infection.

"She continues to be stressed and is swimming rapidly in her hospital pool," Akamine said yesterday. "She's taking her formula well."

The dolphin, stranded at Pokai Bay in Waianae, was spotted by divers on Christmas Day. Officials do not know whether the pneumonia was the cause of her stranding. Few baby dolphins survive in such cases, Akamine said.

"Everyone's been giving it their best," she said. "She's had veterinary care from the time she left the ocean."