This photo taken July 4, 2012, at the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, Alaska, shows Dennis Christen of the Georgia Aquarium feed a bottle to a baby beluga calf being rehabilitated at the center. The whale was approximately two days old when it was found in Bristol Bay, Alaska, and separated from its mother. Staff from the Alaska SeaLife Center is receiving help with the whale's care from the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, Shedd Aquarium in ChiCago and SeaWord in San Diego. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)The first rescued baby beluga whale in U.S. history is being cared for in an Alaska aquarium.
The whale, believed to have been separated from its mother in a storm, was found near South Naknek in Alaska's Bristol Bay on June 18. The calf was just two to three days old.
Beluga specialists from across the country have arrived in Alaska to help the Alaska Sealife Center with the whale's extensive care. Three full-time staff are with the calf at all times, administering tube feedings eight to 10 times a day.
The vulnerability of the calf's immune system is their main concern.
"The state of his immune system is not where I would like it to be," said veterinarian Dr. Carrie Goertz. "He will be at risk for infection for months until his own immune system starts kicking into gear because he never received milk from his mother."
Specialists from Atlanta, Chicago and San Diego have provided invaluable knowledge.
"We don't have any other stranded belugas to compare it to," said Brett
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