Georgia Aquarium’s 4R Program is designed to positively impact the health and well-being of aquatic life from around the world and your contributions directly help us with this important initiative.
Meet Gina Fisher, Georgia Aquarium Senior Biologist, and Jasper, a sea otter pup. During the summer of 2008, Fisher spent two weeks in Seward, Alaska, assisting the Alaska Sea Life Center in giving care to two sea otter pups they rescued from the Alaskan coast. Fisher was part of a team of skilled biologists from facilities around the country that assisted in this dire rescue effort. The Alaska Sea Life Center desperately reached out to the zoo and aquarium world for assistance. Your support for the 4R program allowed Georgia Aquarium to immediately respond to this rescue need.
Sea otters, like Jasper, have an extremely high metabolism. Sadly, if otters do not eat enough food at the right times, they can go into hypoglycemic (or insulin) shock. Fisher and the team cared for the otters around-the-clock, providing naps, feedings and baths in order to prevent this tragedy from occurring. Both pups were brought back to health and are now on their way to the Minnesota Zoo to inhabit the Zoo’s new exhibit, Russia’s Grizzly Coast.
“It was an amazing opportunity to play an active role in making a positive difference in the health and well-being of these animals,” Fisher said. “Now the pups will live in a safe environment where they can thrive, and we will continue to learn more from them. I’m so thankful that Georgia Aquarium allowed me to go and be a part of their rescue and rehabilitation.”
If you have any questions or need additional information, contact Stephanie Brown at 404-581-4136 or sbrown@georgiaaquarium.org.
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