There are many reasons for attempting to save stranded dolphins -- scientific, and personal. Medically, what is learned from the rehabilitation effort of a dolphin patient is important for that individual, but also, by increasing the body of medical knowledge, future stranded dolphins will have a greater chance at survival.

These terms can be confusing. Dolphins, whales, and porpoises are together known as cetaceans. Cetaceans are air-breathing mammals that have adapted from a terrestrial existence to life in the sea. Whales tend to be larger than dolphins, but this is not always the case with some species. The term "porpoise" is sometimes heard in Florida referring to dolphins. However, true porpoises do not live in our area.

The United States Marine Mammal Stranding Network, of which we are a part, has been established to respond to these emergencies. In Sarasota and Manatee counties, call the Florida Marine Patrol at 1-800-DIAL FMP. If you are located outside of our response area, notify the Network representative in your area. At the stranding site, first, determine that the dolphin is indeed in need of help as dolphins will normally swim in very shallow water near shore at times to feed.

Whales and dolphins can be found in almost every sea and ocean, from the Arctic ocean, through the tropics all the way to the Antarctic. Each species however has its own preferred type of habitat. Some live cold water only, others in tropical oceans only. There are also species that can be found in a large variety of environments, like the bottlenose dolphins, killer whales and sperm whales. source: P.G.H.Evans (1987) The Natural History of Whales and Dolphins.

Run the motor (and heater) for about 10 minutes per hour, opening one window slightly to let in air. Make sure that snow is not blocking the exhaust pipe—this will reduce the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Division of Law Enforcement at 1-888-404-FWCC or *FWC from your cell phone.

There are probably many reasons why cetaceans strand, including illness, injury, being lost, or following a sick individual ashore. Perhaps the dolphin has come ashore because it is too weak to go on and can’t defend itself against predators. This is the reason why it is NOT recommended to push these animals back out to sea. Sometimes they strand singly and sometimes en masse.

Unfortunately, dolphins do not strand when they are just a little sick; they come ashore when they are nearly dead. Consequently, few survive to become healthy again. Historically nation-wide, less than 10% of stranded cetaceans survive. We at the Dolphin and Whale Hospital have been able to release nearly 30%! Through increased public support, we hope to raise those statistics to the point where more than half of the cases that come to us regain their health. (Back to Top)

Dolphins have to be conscious to breath (Williams et al, 1990). This means that they cannot go into a full deep sleep, because then they would suffocate. Dolphins have "solved" that by letting one half of their brain sleep at a time. This has been determined by doing EEG studies on dolphins. Dolphins sleep about 8 hours a day in this fashion. REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, usually associated with dreaming has been recorded only very rarely.

Most dolphins live in the ocean and the ocean water is too salty for them to drink. If they would drink sea water, they would actually use more water trying to get rid of the salt than they drank in the first place. Most of their water they get from their food (fish and squid). Also, when they metabolise (burn) their fat, water is released in the process. Their kidneys are also adapted to retaining as much water as possible.