CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Winter the Dolphin gets a lot of visitors each week, but she shares a special connection to one guest excited to meet her Sunday.

  • Winter the Dolphin shares special bond with visitor
  • Tiffany Johnson wears prosthetic arm after being bitten by shark
  • Prosthetic was made by same company that made Winter's tail

Last June, Tiffany Johnson was bitten by a shark while snorkeling in the Bahamas. She now uses a prosthetic arm -- one made by the same prosthetic company that created Winter's tail.

On the snorkeling trip, Johnson said she felt a bump on her arm. When she turned to see what it was, her arm was in a shark's mouth.

"He was looking at me and then darting everywhere, then looking at me. And it was just eerie," Johnson said.

Johnson said meeting Winter -- star of the movie the Dolphin Tale and a major draw at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium -- was an unforgettable experience.

She says she's used the Dolphin Tale movies to help her children cope with her tragedy.

"Winter and I share the same type of story. We both lost our limb in the ocean," Johnson said. "To be able to show the kids, 'Look, Winter is using her prosthetic just like Mama... I don't wear it all the time, just like Winter doesn't use it all the time.' You wear it when you need to."

Johnson has been back to the Bahamas since the attack but has not swam in the ocean.

But meeting Winter with her family was "amazing, and they connected so well, and this is just an experience I think they'll remember for the rest of their lives," Johnson said.

Tiffany Johnson and her family watch Winter the Dolphin at Clearwater Marine Aquarium on Sunday. Johnson wears a prosthetic after being bitten by a shark in the Bahamas last year. (Jorja Roman, staff)
Tiffany Johnson and her family watch Winter the Dolphin at Clearwater Marine Aquarium on Sunday. Johnson wears a prosthetic after being bitten by a shark in the Bahamas last year. (Jorja Roman, staff)