Record Number Of Seals At GSPCA

Tuesday, 30 January 2024 14:17

Pictured: Didier, Maya, Jem, Faulkner, Grinch, Baby, Shark

There are eight poorly grey seal pups currently recovering in Guernsey's animal shelter.

Dolly is the latest seal pup to enter the GSPCA's care.

She was found at Fort Doyle yesterday (29 January), very dehydrated, with worms, a chest infection, and damaged flippers.

The young seal was transferred to the intensive care unit to recover, alongside 7 other seals.

Shelter Manager, Steve Byrne, says they've never had 8 seal pups at once before.

He suspects the recent storms have washed more ashore from a specific area:

"Quite often the pups that we are rescuing, it's very likely that they are coming from The Humps of Herm.

Adult seals can swim 40 or 50 miles in a day - the pups not such large distances - so they are very likely to have been born within a few miles of the beaches where they are being found.

And our wildlife has had to deal with around 3 months of really rough weather, so it's no wonder that we are seeing such a high number of seal pups this season."

He added that the number of hungry seals has put a strain on the animal shelter financially:

"Having to get palettes full of fish is not the cheapest thing to do.

They do eat 20 to 30 fish a day as they get stronger and ready for release."

He hopes the public will continue to support them through donations.

Dolly and The Humps of Herm outlined