Rescued harbor seal, sea lion pups released back into ocean

Marine mammals rescued from abandonment were finally released back into the ocean in Pebble Beach on Saturday.

The Marine Mammal Center, which rehabilitates animals rescued from the ocean, released five harbor seal pups and three sea lion pups.

The center’s head veterinarian says these pups got separated from their mothers at a young age and were malnourished. They rescued and nursed them back to health, basically teaching them how to eat fish.

Rescuers also found some of the pups with puncture wounds and abrasions. The center says these pups would have died if they weren’t rescued from the beach. But now they will return to their home prepared.

“They’ve been living at The Marine Mammal Center in pools and pens where we’ve been training them to catch fish and eat fish. And it’s going to take them a little while, but this is an incredible place to be a harbor seal,” said Shawn Johnson, the head veterinarian for TMMC. “You’ll see that there’s wild harbor seals all around the beach here. They’re going to learn very quickly how to forge on their own.”

The center rescued most of these pups from San Mateo, Sonoma and Monterey Counties. They have 600 volunteers who help throughout the year with animal care alone.