A first for hospital: CT scan for Cook Museum’s turtle

By KATIE STEEL The Decatur Daily

DECATUR - Decatur Morgan Hospital had an unusual patient last Tuesday with a natural greenish color and the need for a damp cloth to cover his eyes.

Kale, a critically endangered species of sea turtle from the Cook Museum of Natural Science, received a computerized tomography (CT) scan at the hospital to check his progress recovering from an infection that has kept him from being in an exhibit for 18 months.

“This was the first animal of any kind that we’ve ever done a CT scan of over here at Decatur Morgan,” said Candace Pettey, the hospital’s marketing and community relations coordinator. “It was a lot of fun to watch, and as an animal lover, I’m glad we got to help him out.”

Kale, a Kemp’s ridley sea turtle, has been suffering from an infection on his carapace, or shell, and was removed from display at the Cook Museum, where he was the unofficial mascot, in January 2022. Kale came to the museum in 2020 because he couldn’t be returned to the wild following surgery to repair damage to his throat when he was accidentally hooked by a recreational fisherman in Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay.

The infection is a separate issue from the neck injury. Joy Harris, marketing coordinator at the museum, said they are unsure when or how the infection got started.

“This could have been present