World's Richest Sea Turtle "Assaulted and Robbed"

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This female turtle wasn't able to eat because her belly was full of...

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This female turtle wasn't able to eat because her belly was full of coins.

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Nearly 1,000 coins were removed from the green sea turtle, who survived four hours of surgery Monday to have them removed from her digestive tract.

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The surgery wasn’t easy going. After turtle was anesthetized, a 10-centimeter opening was cut into the bottom of her shell. The doctors were unable to remove the coins that way, so they had to cut into her stomach to remove the coins, making sure not to tear the delicate lining of the turtle’s abdomen.

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The vets decided to name the Turtle, "Piggy Bank".

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The doctors said this was the world’s first surgery to remove coins from a green sea turtle and that Piggy Bank will remain for one to two weeks. When Piggy Bank is completely recovered, she will be released back into the ocean.

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It seems the turtle ate coins that people left "to come back for them" or "for luck". Many tourists trow coins in the water not thinking about the animals that live there.

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The team was unable to estimate the total value of Piggy Bank’s internal wealth, as many of the coins were in other currencies or had corroded beyond recognition.

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The doctors said they hope people will learn a lesson from this and treat nature with much more respect.