Miami , Florida ( CNN ) -- Five months after the Deepwater Horizon explosion unleashed a torrent of oil into the Gulf of Mexico , a male dolphin washed up on Louisiana 's Gulf Coast just barely alive . `` Other dead ones [ dolphins ] had exterior oiling on them , '' recalls Michele Kelley of the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans . `` He was the first live oiled marine mammal . '' Oil covered the dolphin 's body , but little was found in his blowhole or mouth -- a good sign . Rescuers noticed that the animal appeared to be underweight for his size and put his age at about 2 years old . The rescuers also saw injuries and believe he was beaten by another dolphin . `` For an animal as young as he is , he has a stat of about a 5 % chance of survival , '' said Kelley , who oversees the rescue of stranded animals in Louisiana for the Audubon Nature Institute . `` Him , I would have given him maybe 2 % max . He had a lot of issues , oil was his final issue . '' Explore the depths of the Gulf Oil disaster . The rescue team photographed him and recorded him under the name LA-405 . He was later given the nickname `` Louie . '' The rescue team took Louie to the Audubon Aquatic Center in New Orleans , cleaned him off , and began teaching him how to swim again . A staff member had to be in the water with him around the clock to hold Louie above the waterline so he could breathe . Otherwise , he would sink . It took over two and half weeks until the little dolphin showed signs of improvement . Louie started eating fish on his own and started learning how to swim again by moving his tail up and down . That was the beginning of an intense rehabilitation process . In the end it would take 700 hours of care over five months before Louie would be declared healthy . That was a bittersweet time for the Audubon Aquatic Center staff . `` You cry . You shed tears , '' Kelley says , `` You put five months into this animal , his rehab and seeing him everyday and taking care of him . Then it 's time for him to go and we know that it 's the best thing for him . '' Despite his progress , it is too risky to release Louie into the wild because of his young age . So this week , with the help of the U.S. Coast Guard , Louie was transported the Dolphin Research Center in the Florida Keys , a nonprofit organization that cares for rescued dolphins . `` In dolphin maturity he would still be dependent on his mom and that whole structure of a maturity pod to learn foraging , to learn survival techniques , avoiding predators , things like that , '' said Mary Stella , a spokeswoman for Dolphin Research Center . In Louisiana , 62 dolphins have been collected since the oil spill , and all but two were found dead , according to Kelley . One of the two rescued died during rehabilitation . This left Louie as Louisiana 's sole survivor , and the only rehabilitated dolphin to survive the worst oil spill in U.S. history . Timeline : Oil spill in the Gulf . Having just arrived at his new home , Louie will eventually be integrated into a group of other dolphins at the facility . He will also have to get used to his name , which he received upon arrival in the Florida Keys . `` Part of the reason we named him Louie is to immediately connect him to his Louisiana roots because here you have a little guy who has a real survivor story to tell , '' Stella says . `` He serves as a reminder of the importance of protecting these animals out in the wild and protecting the environment . ''
`` Louie '' the dolphin washed up on Louisiana 's Fourchon Beach in September . He was covered in oil , the result of the massive Gulf oil spill five months earlier . The dolphins were found to be suffering from a variety of ailments including respiratory problems and skin rashes. He was transported to the Dolphin Research Center in the Florida Keys .