Youngest ever seal admitted to centre returns home to the wild
A seal pup that was born prematurely and rescued from a beach in Kent has made a full recovery and been returned to the wild.
The young seal was discovered on the beach at Sandwich Bay in June and was rescued by a team from British Divers Marine Life Rescue who took him to RSPCA Mallydams Wood, in Hastings, East Sussex.
Weighing in at just 8.7kg it was essential staff at the centre gave him round -the-clock care, taking it in turns to give him feeds through the night for the first week.
Wildlife Rehabilitation Team Manager at RSPCA Mallydams Richard Thompson said: “This pup was the youngest we have ever taken in to the centre.
“He was so young his umbilical cord was still attached and he still had his white, downy lanugo coat which is normally lost before birth. Because he still had these we knew he must’ve been born prematurely.
“He needed a lot of intensive care and tlc. Sadly we cannot substitute mum’s rich milk so his growth rate was much slower than it would’ve been had everything gone successfully in the wild.
“After a month with us he still only weighed just over 11kg. But once he was up to weight and full strength he was put in one of our outdoor seal pools where he could build up his strength and fitness.
“We are happy to say that after more than four-months with us he weighed a healthy 31kg and was successfully released back into the wild.”
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