Rescued dolphin loses final battle

The rough-toothed dolphin that was rescued by the local officials and Ocean Adventure authorities last February 7 in Alaminos, Pangasinan died at around 6 a.m. Thursday.The dolphin, named “Bayanihan" by his handlers, died after doctors noted fast deterioration of its condition.“We’ve done our best to keep Bayanihan, unfortunately, his health deteriorated during the last three days," Francis Maniago of the Marine Mammals operation of Ocean Adventure said.

Two weeks ago, the local government of Alaminos, Pangasinan turned over the stranded dolphin to Ocean Adventure for 24-hour care. The dolphin was found to be suffering from external injuries and was severely emaciated after it was rescued.Maniago said that the dolphin suffered from scoliosis and had parasites in its feces.

“By his length and approximate age, his weight should have been around 100 kilograms, but when we got him from Pangasinan, his was only 56 kilograms," Maniago said, adding that at the time of death, the dolphin weighed 60 kilograms.The animal is currently undergoing necropsy to determine the cause of his death.