A little female seal got stuck in a muddy puddle, but a herd of cows found her which led to her rescue and eventually — way back home.
According to The Dodo, the seal pup named Celebration lost contact with her mother in July 2015 when she was only a few days old. She hadn't been found since.
However, a herd of 30 cows saw her stranded in the mud at the Frampton Marsh nature reserve in the UK and gathered around her to explore the odd newcomer. The herd captured the attention of a birdwatcher who was startled to discover a pup in the mud. The man called help to rescue the baby seal.
Cows Save A Lost Seal Pup in United Kingdom
According to Kingdoms TV, Ian Ellis discovered the strange herd of cows while bird-watching. He took a closer look through his telescope and was startled to discover a seal pup in the center of the inquisitive cows.
Rescuers arrived on the scene immediately and brought the young seal in for treatment when it became clear that her mother was nowhere to be seen. She was underweight, dehydrated, and got a lung infection.
Celebration found a home in Skegness Natureland Seal Sanctuary, where she was nurtured and given temporary care for her illness,. She also made a friend in the guise of Charlie, a seal that arrived at the same time as her.
Since then, Celebration has focused on nourishing herself. When both put on enough weight, she and Charlie were ultimately told to return home by Natureland.
Ellis and the Natureland team brought Celebration back to the water, which she hadn't seen since she was a pup. As soon as the doors to their cages opened, she and Charlie started to waddle back to the waves they call home.
A picture taken soon after Celebration's release shows her gazing out towards the ocean as she gets ready to jump in, finally back where she belongs.
It all comes down to a birdwatcher and a few confused cows.
About Skegness Natureland Seal Sanctuary
The Skegness Natureland Seal Sanctuary is dedicated to taking care of seals and returning them to the wild.
Natureland has dealt with several strange animal guests since its opening. These include dolphins and whales, a "lost" walrus and pelican, as well as several oiled seabirds and injured birds of prey, and have returned them to the wild wherever feasible.
Seal pups that have been abandoned by their mothers or separated from them by the tides wash up on the beaches close to Skegness every year, especially during the mating season.
The lucky ones are transferred to Natureland's Seal Hospital, where they get compassionate care from the personnel.
Getting the pup to feed is the actual issue since it suckles differently than other animals do and cannot be trained to suck from a bottle.
They can swallow a few sprats or entire fish, approximately 3 inches long, with a little assistance for a week or two.
They first require assistance opening their jaws, but they rapidly learn how to do it and queue up for their twice daily meals.
The animals are given vitamins and other treatments by placing each tablet into a little fish to help them stay healthy. The pups are moved to the Rearing Pool if all goes according to plan, where they learn how to eat fish while swimming and gain the weight they need to thrive in the wild.
A few months later, when the pup is strong, fat, and healthy, it is returned to the sea.
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