BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — If you were getting a scan done at Rockledge Regional Medical Center Tuesday morning, you might’ve caught a glimpse of a patient unlike anyone else.

The hospital hosted a 150-pound loggerhead sea turtle in order to conduct some scans that aren’t readily available in other veterinary settings. 

Tuesday’s trip was also unique in that it was only the second MRI done for one of the Brevard Zoo’s turtles. 

“We use CT (computerized tomography) very frequently to look really well at bone density and structure and those types of structures, whereas the MRI (Magnetic resonance imaging) is much better for soft tissue structures,” said Kyle Donnelly, a veterinarian at Brevard Zoo. 

“In this particular turtle, we’re worried about something wrong with his brain and cervical spinal cord," she said. "So, the MRI is going to give us a lot better detail and a little bit better idea of what’s going on with the actual soft tissue structures in the head.”

The turtle in question is Rhubarb, named for the day he was brought to the zoo’s health center: June 9, or National Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day. 

When he was placed into his water tank, the zoo noticed he was swimming in circles, but was always going to the left, which was unusual. 

“He can’t do anything, but swim to the left, going around and around in a circle," Donnelly said. "So, that indicates to us that there’s something wrong with his sense of balance and his orientation — where he thinks he is in space."

Because they don’t have a CT scanner or an MRI machine at the zoo, Rhubarb was tranquilized and transported to the RRMC Tuesday morning. 

It was only the second time the zoo has done an MRI scan on one of their turtles. 

“Believe it or not, there’s not separate MRI machines for veterinary patients versus human patients," Donnelly said. "So, the technology is the same and we’re very lucky to have a community that’s so supportive of our patients here, and the sea turtles here."

Even though the hospital has enjoyed a relationship with the zoo for years, the MRI scan brought some new experiences for the hospital staff as well.

MRI Technologist Shannon Bartlett said Tuesday was her first time performing an MRI scan on a turtle’s brain.

“Being able to image him and see the different views of how a turtle brain looks compared to a human brain is pretty exciting,” she said.

She noted that one of the things they were looking for in the scans was the presence of nearly microscopic parasites called mites, which may be impacting Rhubarb’s brain. 

Beyond the scans, Donnelly and her team at the zoo will continue to care for Rhubarb until he is ready to head back out to the Atlantic Ocean.