Auckland Zoo resident vet Lydia Uddstrom said the young turtle came to them "exhausted, dehydrated and not eating".
"We took some X-rays to get a really good look at him and assess his flipper. We were unable to determine the cause of the injury but checked that his remaining bones were all right, which they were."
Uddstrom said it felt great to be able to provide vet care for the endangered turtle and work in partnership with the Kelly Tarlton's team.
She said the aim was to get the turtle back in the ocean.
"We don't have any marine turtles in New Zealand which breed on the beaches, which means a turtle found on the beach is not well for whatever reason."
Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium curator Andrew Christie said while the hawksbill still had a long road to recovery, he had made an "impressive turnaround" at the rehabilitation centre.
Christie said they were happy to share the little turtle's story on World Turtle Day - a day dedicated to the care, conservation and awareness of one of the oldest living reptiles in the world.
The hawksbill is expected to be on site at Kelly Tarlton's quarantine area for the next three to six months while the critical rehabilitation process is carried out.
Christie said they're aiming to release him on public display in time for summer.
The Turtle Rescue Team encouraged all Kiwis to keep an eye out for distressed turtles close to shore.
The best thing to do if you find a marine turtle washed up is contact your local DOC office on 0800 DOC HOT.
The stages of turtle rehabilitation:
- Bloods taken, turtles are X-rayed and medically stabilised at Auckland Zoo.
- Daily observations continue at Kelly Tarlton's.
- Once turtles are stable enough to be housed in the large quarantine tank, the first objective is to get it to feed.
- Water in the tank gradually cooled down over a few weeks to match the aquarium display water temperature.
- Turtles will stay in this tank until fit for wild release.
