Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network

The Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network has a new dolphin patient at their Galveston rehab center and this little guy has only survived thus far because of the caring people involved, ranging from the fishermen that found him to the boat captain that transported his rescue team, to TMMSN staff & volunteers working around the clock with him.  Read more about Russ's story below and how you can help: 
Formula, medical costs, and daily support of a dolphin is very expensive and often requires many months of care.  TMMSN is a non-profit organization that has been conducting dolphin research and rehabilitation in Texas since 1980 and they rely on donations and trained volunteers to complete their work.

Baby Russ is a young male bottlenose dolphin, estimated to be approximately 6 months of age.  A fisherman by the name of Russell Gregg discovered him Sunday morning, injured and stranded in the shallow bays of Port O’Connor.  He reported the young dolphin to the TMMSN stranding hotline (1-800-9MAMMAL), with information that the dolphin was only accessible with a very shallow draft vessel, capable of traversing the mangroves. 

The TMMSN Critical Care Team responded and acquired the help of Captain Will Granberry of Bay Fishing Port O’Connor Charters.  Once TMMSN located the dolphin, he was quickly loaded onto the boat, transported across the bay and loaded into their dolphin ambulance for the drive back to their rehab center in Galveston, TX. The dolphin was named “Baby Russ” after the gentlemen who was in the water by the dolphin’s side, providing first aid care for hours until our team could get out to the site. 

Once back at TMMSN, little Russ began swimming on his own and he is receiving a special dolphin formula via bottle and tube every few hours.   He is underweight and has likely been separated from his mom and unable to eat for some time.  He has numerous wounds covering his body, some of which are shark bites.  Blood was drawn for assessment and his wounds treated.  TMMSN will continue to provide nutritional and supportive care and monitor him for infection.  

More information about Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network can be found at DolphinRescue.org or on their facebook page.

Rimmy is  a dolphin that  stranded in September 2017 on the Texas Coast and has been recovering at Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network for close to a year now.  She is still recovering from an extensive lung infection and recently underwent a follow-up CT scan, thanks to University of Texas Medical Branch, to monitor her progression and to aid in understanding her current condition for placement with other dolphins at a permanent care facility.

Rimmy was deemed non-releasable by the National Marine Fisheries Service and is still searching for a permanent home to provide her with treatment and socialization.  Until that time, TMMSN will continue to care for her. 

We need your support.  Dolphin rehabilitation is costly and even with donations of food and medication from our partners at SeaWorld and Moody Gardens, the average cost is $200-$400/day.  This ensures that her environment meets standards for marine mammal rehabilitation and she receives the best social and mental stimulation that we can provide while she is with us.  A complex case and lengthy rehabilitation such as Rimmy’s is a huge financial obligation and we want to be sure we are able to provide care for Rimmy and support the next dolphin that is in need. 

Many volunteers and thousands of hours have been devoted to caring for Rimmy.  There is always someone observing her round the clock and recording behaviors that provide crucial information for her care and treatment.  Rimmy spends hours playing with her toys each day and her kelp straps and Frisbees seem to be her all-time favorites!   

No donation is too small.  Please spread the word. If you have colleagues, associates or even companies that would like to become involved in this donation program we would appreciate your help.

You can learn more about the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network on our website  www.dolphinrescue.org 

If you'd like to follow Rimmy's progress like our Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/tmmsn.dolphin.rescue/

About Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network (TMMSN) is a non-profit organization created in 1980 to further the understanding and conservation of marine mammals through rescue and rehabilitation, research and education.  The TMMSN consists of six regions along the Texas coast, which provide a coordinated response to all marine mammal strandings along the Texas coastline.

TMMSN receives only limited institutional support in the form of grants.  TMMSN RELIES on the donations of time and funds from generous supporters to continue it's mission dedicated to rescue, rehabilitation, research, and education.

Tango is one of our own bottlenose dolphin of South Padre Island. She is in need of rescue. This beautiful dolphin has fishing line not only  wrapped around her dorsal fin but the whole entanglement goes to her right fluke of her  tail and is wrapped around it which inhibits her ability to swim.
Everyday we see her slowly moving around begging for fish from fishing boats until she can be rescued as fishing on her own is difficult for her to move around. Rescue efforts are underway by my heroes the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network to save Tango. This will involve bringing in boats, vets and rescue specialists. Your donation will help cover the costs to save Tango as boats have to be brought in from as far away as Florida that specialize in safe marine mammal rescues.
My name is Scarlet Colley dolphinwhisper  and I have spent twenty years with this tribe of dolphins. To see Tango hopelessly entangled is heartbreaking and everyday all of us who see her while out on the Laguna Madre Bay cry for her and out to her that help is on its way.  The experts are coming soon.
Let's all help out this poor dolphin not only with funding but with prayers that she will be rescued. This team has rescued two others of our tribe. One in 2005 Ranger, and little Mohawk in 2009. Both of these dolphin have come to our boats this week with incredible greetings of thankyou and almost as if to say now Save Tango Too. This money will go straight to the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network a non profit that has saved so many of our own, the magnificent bottlenose dolphin of South Padre Island. Dolphin hugs and Mama Mia let's save her.

We are working hard for the best outcome with “Birdie” and you can help our efforts by reading her story below, donating to offset her rehabilitation which is expected to be lengthy and costly and sharing her story with others.

At 3:30 AM on December 18, 2014 a sub-adult female Bottlenose dolphin was found stranded on Bolivar Peninsula, Texas. Upon notification the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network (TMMSN) immediately mobilized and found the need to transport Birdie back to the network’s rehabilitation facility where veterinary and rehabilitative care has been constantly administered.


The TMMSN staff and volunteers have been working vigilantly around the clock to monitor and care for “Birdie”, who received her name in honor of the Galveston County Sheriff Deputy who initially found and cared for her on the beach while awaiting the arrival of the TMMSN rescue team.

After getting Birdie to the TMMSN rehabilitation facility and completing early diagnostic testing, we focused recovery efforts on providing her nutritional support, hydration, antibiotic therapy and anti-parasitic therapy. While she required assistance feeding she continued to swim on her own, which was encouraging.

Birdie’s rehabilitation is still ongoing and she’ll need our continued help until she is well. Bloodwork, ultrasound and endoscopy have revealed that she has been dealing with lung lesions, gastric ulcers and parasites, all of which she is still receiving treatment for.

Will Birdie make it back to the Wild? Although release is a crucial part of our mission, at this juncture, we are focused on getting Birdie well. Once we have resolved her health issues and have the best information available concerning her condition, we will begin discussions with the National Marine Fisheries Service regarding her final disposition, which is a legal requirement in the United States. Until then, we have a lot of work to do and we’re asking for your help!

The Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network does not receive any guaranteed federal or State funding to operate. The TMMSN relies upon small grants, public support and volunteers to continue its mission statement efforts of Rescue, Rehabilitation, Research and Education.

Expenses are high for rehabilitation such as this and we appreciate that you are considering donating to this cause. Your donation will immediately be put towards medications, life support systems maintenance and direct facility costs that are critical in Birdie’s recovery effort. Birdies medication costs alone are currently running around $120 a day. By supporting the TMMSN you have the opportunity to be a positive influence in the rescue, conservation, education and research that is vital to our Texas shoreline and for the beautiful mammals that call it home.

To date a total of 80 volunteers have spent more than 2,000 hours taking care of Birdie 24/7. There is always someone observing her round the clock and recording behaviors that provide crucial information for her care and treatment. (read some of the volunteer comments at the bottom) Birdie is estimated to be 3-5 years old and is keeping the team on their toes with what is on the menu, Herring or Capelin, small fish or large ones. She is eating 75-100 lbs. of fish each week and at times she “eats like a bird” so we know that she is still far from being well enough to consider for disposition any time soon and that her rehabilitation could be lengthy.


In the wild, dolphins have been observed to be playful and curious, so Birdie is also provided with enrichment devices or “toys” to help stimulate and maintain that curiosity and allow her to play. Birdie plays by mouthing and pushing toys around the pool, and frequently rubs on brushes or a rubbing rope. Her favorite past time right now is rubbing on brushes…it helps her to slough skin off and no doubt feels very good. She loves to grab noodles in her mouth and drag them around the pool and frequently puts her chin on the hula hoop to push it underwater so that she can swim through the middle of it, which is usually a lot of fun for the volunteers to see. Her number one pick for a toy right now is a dive ring. She picks it up off the pool bottom and wears it around her nose (rostrum) and tosses it across the pool above the water. Then there are times where she is not interested in any of the toys which is a sign that she is still in the recovery process.

The Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network (TMMSN) is a non-profit organization created in 1980 to further the understanding and conservation of marine mammals through rescue and rehabilitation, research and education. The TMMSN consists of six regions along the Texas coast, which provide a coordinated response to all marine mammal strandings along the Texas coastline.

Please spread the word. If you have colleagues, associates or even companies that would like to become involved in this donation program we would appreciate your help. Sponsorship opportunities also exist at the TMMSN annual fundraising event (the Land and Sand Family Fun Run) which is a 10k, 5k and 1k run that we have each year at the end of March which is a great wrap up for Dolphin Awareness month.

You can learn more about the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network on our website.  www.dolphinrescue.org 

To learn more, become a sponsor or to register for the fun run please visit our race website. Land & Sand Run  

We will post updates about Birdies progress on this page and you can follow her on our Facebook   page.

If we reach and exceed our goal for the Birdie campaign all the money raised will be used for her ongoing rehabilitation and for the TMMSN mission of rescue, rehabilitation, research and education.

The TMMSN staff, volunteers and the Board of Directors want to “Thank You” for your time and consideration.

We have a comment box for our Volunteers to share the experiences they have had with Birdie and we wanted to share some with you.

Volunteer comments:

“I love seeing Birdie’s “dolphinality” come out as she interacts with her enrichment toys”

“My favorite memory of Birdie is when I first witnessed her interacting with the newly introduced rope (seems to be her favorite!). She seemed happy, which is what matters most!”

“My favorite memory was after I came back from being gone for a while. Birdie seemed to have improved a lot and Heidi told me she likes to swim through her hula hoop now. When I saw her do it for the first time I thought it was so cute!”

“Birdie’s perseverance through rehabilitation is nothing short of inspiring.  Despite everything she had been through, she immediately swam on her own- a testament to the will and strength of animals. Hang in there Birdo!”