VIRGINIA KEY, FLA. (WSVN) - A rescued manatee is ready to be released back into the wild.

The manatee, named Commandyr, was in rehab at the Miami Seaquarium after he was injured from a boat strike.

When officials found him in November, he was floating and underweight.

Since his treatment, he’s healthy and ready to go.

“We wanted him to gain weight, so we gave him lots of lettuce so he could gain weight,” said Jessica Schiffhauer with Miami Seaquarium, “and he was able to work out his floating issues, and then we dive tested him, so we knew he could navigate all the water columns.”

The 1,000 pound Commandyr is headed back to the waters off Key Largo, where he was originally found.

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