Marra
– the Maryport dolphin remembered
At a public meeting in January 2007 it was suggested
that a monument should be placed in Maryport and Sonia Poland, a
monumental mason at Maryport offered to donate a commemorative plaque
of Marra.
On July 28th the Marra plaque was unveiled on Maryport
Inshore Rescue slip by Workington MP Tony Cunningham. This was organised
by Tracey Routledge who had arranged for the press and TV to attend
and was subsequently reported on both Border TV and in the local
papers.
Photo courtesy of Tracey Routledge.
Jenny Watkins
Cumbria Co-ordinator
Seal
pup rescue - North Yorkshire
29th August
At
approximately 12.05hrs Wednesday 29th August I received a call from
a lady, Margaret Hurd, advising me of a seal pup on the beach at
Hunmanby Gap, Filey Bay, N. Yorkshire. Margaret told me the pup
appeared to be favouring one side when it moved about. I asked her
if there were any visible injuries to the pup, and she said she
hadn’t got that close [very sensible]. I explained to Margaret
about normal seal behaviour feeling that this would be a routine
call, I assured her that I would send a medic out as soon as possible.
I
then called Bruce Pawson MMM who lives 5 mins away from the pup.
He was due to leave for work at 13.00hrs, but kindly agreed to go
and take a look for me. It’s at this point I should say at
the moment I have a broken little toe and am unable to drive myself,
or I would have gone to this pup myself.
Shortly
after I had spoken to Bruce, Ryan took another call from Margaret
to say she had been and had a closer look at the pup and it had
fine netting wrapped around the top half of it’s body, and
an ‘official looking’ man was walking toward the pup
[that’ll be Bruce then!]. Ry quickly called Bruce and updated
him so he could get his kit ready.
The
next call we received was from Bruce saying the pup had deep wounds
on both shoulders as a result of the monofilament netting being
embedded. He had cut off the netting but the pup needed veterinary
treatment. As Bruce had to get to work he agreed to lift the pup
and bring it to my house which is on the way. We have been so busy
in our area that we were down to 1 vari kennel for transporting
seal pups. MMM Gary Bolton had picked up the last remaining kennel
from another medics house a few days before, so I gave him a call
and asked if there was any chance of him dropping it off. He agreed
to do so in his lunch break.
Bruce
dually arrived with the pup and as Gary hadn’t arrived by
then, I used my dogs indoor kennel as a tempory measure to put the
pup in. The pup was flat and there was considerable heat coming
from it. Ryan wet a towel for the pup top rest on and we covered
the rear flips to try and get the temperature down. When Gary arrived
we transferred the pup to the kennel and Simon offered to take us
to Swanzdale Veterinary Care Centre, in his lunch hour. I didn’t
bother temping the pup as it was obvious it had a temperature and
to do so would have stressed it out more. We agreed the best thing
would be to get it to the vets asap and do everything there.
Sue
White had phoned ahead and warned the staff of our imminent arrival
so they were an hand to help as soon as we were dropped off. We
weighed the pup, approx 13.5kgs, then took it to the treatment room.
[We weigh the pups in the vari kennels and subtract the weight of
the kennel, so that it’s less handling for the pup.]
We
got the pup out of the kennel once Jim [the vet] was ready for him
and examined it’s wounds. They were full thickness of the
blubber on the right shoulder and through the muscle layer too on
the left shoulder. We examined the rest of him and he had a very
swollen face with blood around it. There was no obvious injury but
his breath was atrocious. He had some superficial wounds to both
fore and rear flippers. We took his temperature 40 [104], [dangerously
high]. I told Jim we would need the pup [a male] tubing in addition
to any other treatment he gave. Jim spoke to James Barnett for advice
as this was only the surgery’s 2nd pup and Jim’s 1st.
After speaking to James, Jim gave the pup a shot of rimadyl and
synalox and 250ml lectade. James had advised that the pup be allowed
to rest for an hour after treatment to see if his temperature would
come down. We left the pup in Jim and Sammy’s [vet nurse]
capable hands, and Simon came back to collect us. On the way home
I got a call from MMM Paul Reaney-Sygrove to say he was nearly at
Scarborough with Jez Wallis MMM to take the pup to East Winch! Dilemma!
Did I send them home to Hull or ask them to come to my home to await
the vets decision to see if the pup was fit to travel in an hour?
I opted for the second option and when I got home plied them with
tea & coffee and kept my fingers crossed.
I
spoke to the surgery an hour later but the vet was with the pup.
He called me back 15mins later to say the pups temp had come down
to 37.8 [100 F] a more manageable level, and was ready for transfer.
Paul & Jez set off to collect the pup, armed with 2 milk cartons
full of fresh water and a spray bottle to keep the pup cool on it’s
journey south.
Shortly
after they had left, I did some calculations and figured the pup
would be due some more fluids by the time it reached Hull [4hrly].
I called Sue White to advise her, and suggested the pup call in
at Swanbridge Veterinary Hospital on route. Sue did all the necessary
arrangements and Paul and Jez took him in.
I
received a call from Paul at 21.45hrs to say he and Jez had just
handed the pup over to Russell New for the last leg of the journey
to East Winch.
Once
again the team had pulled together to ensure this pup had the best
chance at survival with our friends at East Winch.
My
grateful thanks to Ryan for helping coordinate and handling the
seal [due to by injured toe], to Sue White our unsung hero in the
office, to Simon for ferrying us about, to Paul, Jez and Russell
for transporting the seal and to both veterinary practices for their
continued support. Lastly a huge thanks to staff at East Winch for
staying open to admit this pup and for the excellent care they give.
Bev Drayton
- Coordinator Yorkshire.
Click
on images to enlarge - copyright BDMLR |
|
|
|
|
Seal
Rescue, Port Gordon, Morayshire by Laura Smith &
James Brueckner
23rd - 24th August
2007
At
2100 on the 23rd of August, we got a phone call at the WDCS Wildlife
centre from a member of public about a common seal pup on the beach
at Port Gordon Harbour, which had been there all day. We went down
to have a look and could see that the seal was very quite and unresponsive
but it was getting too dark to make a better assessment so we called
Andy Ireland (BDMLR Buchan Coordinator) for advice.
It
was decided that we should go down the next day to take some photos
so that he could assess whether or not it needed to be uplifted.
We
got down to the seal at about 5:45am on the morning of the 24th
and were able to get a better look at it and take some photos to
send to Andy. It seemed to be very thin and was breathing heavily.
Andy made the decision that the pup should be uplifted but contacted
Jamie Dyer (BDMLR Highland Seal Hospital Manager) to confirm, and
ask if 
they
had any space for the pup.
The
seal centres closer to the north of Scotland (Ullapool and Grampian
Wildlife Trust) were full up so the pup was taken to the SSPCA Middlebank
Wildlife Centre.
The
pup was female, weighed in at 10kg and the centre named her Scarlett.
Unfortunately she didn’t make it through the night and the
post mortem showed that she had had a respiratory disease
Thanks to everyone involved in the rescue.
Laura Smith
James Brueckner
BDMLR Inverness Medics & WDCS Spey Bay Staff
Filey
Lifeboat Day, Yorkshire
4th August
2007
The
day kicked off around 8:30am, the weather was very kind to us all,
and some of us got a top up on the tan.
Our pitch was right next to the lifeboat shop, and had a canopy
loaned to us by the RNLI, so we had shelter if it were needed.
Alan Stewart had driven over with the trailer from Hull and we say
a big Ta mate for doing that.
Bev turned up early with Garion to help with setting up as did Vicky
(my daughter), Chris and his wife Lynne and Jez.
We got the trailer in place and set up the tables to hold all the
leaflets, books and stickers, we filled the dolphin and seal models
with water and put them on display to help draw people in, Garion
and myself went down to the end of cobble landing to gather some
stones to hold down the sheets we had covered the tables with, several
bucketful's later and we had supplied the stand next door too, our
friends from the coastguard.
It started getting busy fairly early on and once we started to meet
and greet the public and offer them a sticker or two they seemed
to come in droves.
The public were very interested in who we were and what we did and
soon started to ask about the Thames whale and the Minki whales
in Ipswich and Fraserburgh and wanted to know the out come of the
two Minki's having seen the reports on TV.
We had put up photos of local rescues as well as national ones,
and the public found them very interesting, and listened to the
stories behind them.
They were keen to take the leaflets and other information we had
on the tables, we also gave out loads of pounds for pups leaflets
so hopefully that will generate some income before too long.
By this time Joel had driven over from Hull to join us and was a
welcome sight, he had not been there long when we got a call from
Karen, today of all days, a call to a seal at Flambrough on the
south landing.
This was going to leave us very short handed, but when you get a
call you gotta go.
Alan said he would go and Joel too, a big thank you to the pair
of you, a report on that call out would have been done and posted
with Bev I think.
Chris was kept very busy in the mean time telling people all about
dolphins, and where they could be found, he was also singled out
by the Viscount and Countess Downe and they had a little chat all
about BDMLR, they seemed very impressed by what we do.
We all spent a lot of time talking to the children and their parents
and giving them things to take away to read and do later.
The lady's lifeboat guild deserve a mention for keeping us well
supplied with tea and coffee all day.
We kept repeating that there would be a dolphin demo on the beach
at 3:30pm, and everyone was saying how they were looking forward
to it.
The kids were keen to be there when we told them we needed their
help, and no doubt pestered mum and dad into making sure they didn't
miss out.
There can't have been many people that got under the radar of Chris,
Jez, Garion and Vicky with the stickers and the leaflets, even the
local police Copped for it, (sorry, easy joke there).
Chris even managed to stick one on the Countess, (but he did tell
the police he never touched her, that was just before he stuck one
on them, sorry another easy joke, you can make up your own stories
from here on).
We started to run out of some of the things for kids and the pounds
for pups had all gone too, we need to look at that for next time
and make sure we have enough for the day.
The lifeboat was due off at 1:30pm and the inshore followed it out
into the bay, the all weather boat with all the guests onboard went
steaming off towards the open sea, fortunately for them the sea
was calm and I never heard of anyone throwing ground bait over the
side.
No one was looking too green when they came back, but I noticed
there was no rush to get to the food that had been laid on by the
lady's guild.
After the display by the two boats, which was cut short because
the helicopter from Leconfield had been cancelled due to work commitments,
we asked some of the launch crew for their help in getting the dolphin
down to the waters edge, this we did with the help of there quad
bike and skid trailer, driven very professionally by Fran, thanks
mate for your help.
Once down on the sand we set about organising the demo, we had less
people than we would have liked but two or three of the RNLI boys
came to give us a hand, by now the inshore boat was just in the
surf waiting to help us and this gave a great look to the whole
demo as Bev gave the talk to explain what everybody was there for
and how we go about caring for stranded cetaceans.
The RNLI boys who gave us a hand were, Pip (also a MMM), Damon,
Chris and Francis (also known as egg lad, don't ask, just don't
ask).
We did two rescues while we had the chance and got the kids to help
with bringing the water, the people watching were waving to other
people to come and have a look and we soon had a crowd.
Simon had come down in support as a member of the coastguard, and
was taking pictures of the demo and the day in general, he also
lent me one of his dry suits, so cheers for your help Simon.
While we were all down doing the demo, Chris's wife Lynne had been
looking after the stall for us, for which we are very grateful,
many thanks Lynne, and your welcome back anytime.
Also paying us a visit was Steven Major of Steven Major electrical
services, this is the guy who very kindly fitted out our medic trailer
with all the electric's (for free).
He was made very welcome, and had his photo taken standing next
to the trailer, a very big thank you from all our local medics Steven
and of course BDMLR.
The towel appeal has started to pay off, with people donating towels
and pillowcases for us to use on rescues, they can be left at the
Tea Bar which is owned by Chris and Jacinta, and where Vicky works
during the summer.
All in all it was a very successful day and we look forward to doing
it all again next year.
Bruce Pawson
Filey MMM
Click
on images to enlarge |
|
|
|
|
Seal
pup rescue – Withernsea, East Yorkshire
12th August
On Sunday 12th August at approximately 9.30
in the morning Alex, from HQ, rang us regarding a seal pup reported
by two members of the public to the RSPCA. Also a dead seal nearby
had been reported.
We went to have a look. Both members of the public met us where
the pup was. She was a young weaned common pup, underweight, visibly
tired and lifeless and she was aiming towards the waters. Joel picked
her up and we walked to the car where we waited for Dianne Davies
(medic) to arrive with the kennel.
The dead seal appeared to be a pup (from the
size) but had started to decompose.
At the vet, Joel re-hydrated the seal while
another seal (brought from Whitby the day before by BDMLR medic,
Tracy, was been prepared for the journey to East Winch. We met at
Russell’s pick up point in Sleaford at approximately 3.30
pm, Russell took the two seals and they were admitted at the hospital.
Holt and Barney are doing well, so far.
Thanks to everyone involved in the rescue.
Freddie and
Joel (East Yorkshire Medics).
Seal
Rescue, Cumbria
Friday 17th August 2007
BDMLR HQ rang with
a report of an injured seal. First on scene was Shirley Taylor (medic)
followed by Rob Watkins (Cumbria asst coordinator) 
on
his motorbike. The seal was not very responsive and lying on rocks.
It had injuries to the head and was bleeding
slightly from its mouth. Shirley watched over the pup whilst Rob
returned home for equipment and the Landrover. Steve Hallett (medic)
was asked to collect the kennel so that the pup could be transported
to a local wildlife centre. Rob and Jenny Watkins (Cumbria co-ordinator)
returned and Steve and Rob loaded the pup into the kennel and Steve
named it ‘Derek’. This proved to be correct when it
turned out to be a boy. The pup was transported to the wildlife
centre for overnight care.
Saturday 18th
Vet (BDMLR) Vicki Temple assessed the pup and
it was decided that it needed additional medical treatment. It was
moved to Millcroft Vets at Cockermouth.
Sunday 19th
Pup still receiving care and medical treatment
– decision taken to move pup to East Winch when its condition
is sufficiently stable.
Many thanks to all involved.
Jenny Watkins
- Cumbria Area Coordinator
COMMON
SEAL PUP ON WHITBY BEACH
Tuesday
7th August
Around
teatime, BDMLR HQ called and asked if I could attend a seal pup
on Whitby Beach. Whilst enroute I informed the Beach Patrol to keep
a look out. The Beach Patrol contacted me whilst still enroute to
say that they saw a man and a dog chase it back in to the sea.
Saturday
11 August 2007
08.10
A member of the public informed me that a seal pup was on the beach.
08.15 I arrived on scene but was unable to find the pup, I spoke
to a couple who advised me that a man had grabbed the seal by its
tail and had dragged it back in to the sea.
12.15 I received a call from the Lifeguards to say that a seal pup
was on the beach nr Upgang and was surrounded by people.
12.30 I arrived back on scene, the beach was packed with people
and dogs (around 300-400 people and over a dozen dogs). The pup
was alert but thin, with no visible wounds or discharge. Breathing
seemed erratic.
12.40 With the incoming tide, no sign of mum, erratic breathing
and the amount of people and dogs I decided to remove the pup for
it's own safety. Once I started to leave the area an adult seal
appeared behind the surfline, I contacted the Assistant Co-ordinator
Bev Drayton at 
Scarborough
for advice. Bev advised me to try and get it back in to the water
near mum. I immediately released the pup and monitored the shoreline.
13.55 I saw the pup swimming along with mum.
16.58 I received another call from the Beach Patrol/Lifeguards to
say that a pup was on the beach under the sea wall.
18.00 I arrived back at the beach to find the pup trying to sleep.
I monitored the breathing rate and maintained crowd control, trying
to keep kids and dogs away. At one point the police came on to the
beach to remove some youths that were drinking alcohol.
20.00 I contacted Bev Drayton to see if we could get another medic
down to the beach for a second opinion. The pups breathing was still
erratic and now seemed to be trembling.
22.00 Whitby Medic Don Crank arrived to take over and I was advised
that Gary Bolton an experienced medic from Scarborough was on his
way.
23.00 I received a call from Gary Bolton who said that they were
going to uplift the pup and take to a local vets to be checked over.
The pup which was named 'HOLT' was relayed the next day to RSPCA
Wildlife Centre at East Winch.
I'm
a new medic and this was my second call out to a Common pup in two
weeks. I would like to thank Gary Bolton, Bev Drayton, Don Crank,
Freddie & Joel Taylor & Russell New for their advice and
support. And my wife Ann who stayed with me all day montitoring
the pup.
Gary
Pearson - Whitby & Teeside Medic
Seal
and porpoise call-outs - Northwest, England
5th/6th August
On
sunday 5th August I recieved a call from Merseyside Police Quad
Bikes to say they were in attendance at a seal stranding on Ainsdale
Beach, I headed north from the beach I work on as a National Trust
Warden, on route my Landrover was met by a Police Quad officer who
guided me to the pup, much to the delight of the local press already
on site, it suddenly became a police escort to emergency rescue.
On arrival I found an underweight Common seal pup being contained
in a large tarpaulin by a group of Sefton's Lifeguards. Because
of its condition and the fact that it was on a busy tourist beach
I decided it needed to be removed and placed it in a seal bag and
took it back to my office to check it out. Its weight was 9k and
it looked quite lethargic. I contacted BDMLR out of hours number
and a place was arranged at Stapely Grange (RSPCA), so that night
and the following morning I tubed it and Medic Rob Mathews drove
it to the RSPCA at Stapely Grange. They at first only gave it a
50% chance due to an infection in its muzzle. 
That
evening Monday 6th of August I recieved a call from Trevor to say
CoastGuards and Medic Stuart McCall were dealing with a young porpoise
that had stranded at Lytham near Blackpool so after grabbing my
gear I set out and picked up Medic Louise Mitchele on route, unfortunately
as we were nearing Lytham we were informed it had died, it appeared
it had been taken to deeper water earlier but had come back in and
kept stranding. I met up up with Stuart and the Coastguard and collected
the body of a young Porpoise that showed signs of muscle loss. I
delivered it the following morning to Lea Hurst Vet College for
autopsy. The North West is usually a quiet area but it was probably
a mistake to tempt fate when a couple of days before I had emailed
a new medic and told her that call-outs were luckily very few.
Dave Williams
- BDMLR North West Coordinator
A
job with porpoise
- Port of London Press Release
10th August
The Port of
London Authority has bought new kit for its insurance manager……….dive
gear.
Glenda Frost has been
given nearly £700-worth of specialist equipment so she can
rescue stranded whales, dolphins and seals. The gear – including
a drysuit and lifejacket - will help Glenda’s voluntary work
as a medic with British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR).
PLA chief executive Richard
Everitt said:
“It’s pretty
unusual kit for an insurance manager to carry, but Glenda’s
voluntary work really does pay dividends for the Port and the wider
Kent coastline.”
Glenda first considered
joining BDMLR when the charity and PLA tried to save the Thames
whale last year.
She said: “I think
that’s when it first occurred to me that I could do more than
just provide financial support to charity, that I could get involved
in the actual work they do – be in the front line.”
BDMLR trains volunteers
in basic whale, dolphin and seal rescue techniques. It teaches them
how to spot common signs of trauma, and uses life-size training
models to demonstrate how stranded and injured animals should be
handled and treated. Once trained, volunteers are asked if and when
they’d be prepared to respond to incidents.
“Getting stranded
whales and dolphins back into the water might not be in your average
insurance manager’s job specification, but caring for the
environment is central to the PLA’s day to day business,”
Richard added.
Notes :
- the Port of
London Authority (PLA) is responsible for safety and related matters
on 150km (95 miles) of the tidal Thames from the sea and through
London to Teddington
- for more information about British Divers Marine Life Rescue go
to www.bdmlr.org.uk
[ More information
from: Martin Garside, Port of London Authority, Tel: 01474 562366.
Email: martin.garside@pola.co.uk ]
Seal
Rescue, Rattray Beach, Aberdeenshire
4th August 2007
At 1300
today, I received a call from Andy Ireland (BDMLR Buchan Coordinator)
to say a small seal pup had been reported by the Defence Police
from St. Fergus. The policemen had been monitoring the pup for the
past two days, where it lay in the same position behind the St.
Fergus Gas Terminal (North).
I set off from Rattray
car park on the two mile plus hike along the beach with two of my
daughters (BDMLR Buchan team Junior Helpers), Christine and Iona.
We arrived with the pup at 1440 to find a very thin Common pup lying
on its side.
I immediately phoned Andy to advise him that the pup was malnourished,
had a visible neck and pelvis and seemed to be not too bothered
by our presence. Andy organised a pen at GWT and then set off to
join us with a seal bag so that we could share the lift back to
the car park. Andy arrived at 1545 which gave us plenty time to
monitor the pup and look out for a mum. There were no visible injuries,
respiration was 14 bpm and it was very lethargic even when I moved
it away from the incoming tide.
The policemen who reported
it passed by, and advised me that it had only moved about 30 yards
in the two days they had seen it. They also confirmed there had
been no sign of any other seals.
When Andy arrived he took its temperature which was 37.62 and declared
him to be a boy, estimated age of two weeks old. We cooled him off
with water before putting him in the seal bag and taking it in turns
to carry him to the car park. On route to the car park, after great
debate with the girls, he was named Bambi.
At the car park Andy
administered 200ml Lectade Plus. We then poured more cooling water
over him and let him rest on the grass in the shade for a short
period before transportation. Bambi appeared to feel the benefits
of the fluid as he was much livelier and paying exceptional attention
to Andy and I as we took his temperature again!
Fit for travel, we then
guided him into the kennel ready for Andy to transport to Lawrence
at Grampian Wildlife Trust in New Deer.
Throughout the entire rescue, we were in contact communication with
Jamie Dyer and the plan is that Bambi will be moved to the BDMLR
Seal Hospital in Ullapool early next week.
Many thanks to the Defence
Police from St. Fergus, Andy Ireland (BDMLR Buchan Coordinator),
Elaine Helyer (BDMLR Buchan Medic), Christine & Iona Helyer
(BDMLR Buchan Junior Helpers), Lawrence (Grampian Wildlife Trust)
and Jamie Dyer (BDMLR Highland Seal Hospital Manager).
UPDATE – At 0600
on the 6th of August, Bambi was uplifted from Grampian Wildlife
Trust in New Deer and transported to Spey Bay. He arrived at Spey
Bay at 0830 where he was given 200mls of Lectade Plus. This procedure
was carried out by Andy Ireland (BDMLR Buchan Coordinator) and two
WDCS Volunteers/BDMLR Medics. Bambi arrived around 12.45 at Ullapool
after a further short stop in Inverness.
Jamie Dyer (BDMLR Highland Seal Hospital Manager) will give updates
on Bambi as and when available.
Thanks to Hannah Bird
(WDCS Spey Bay Centre Manager) and to the two BDMLR Medics/WDCS
Volunteers.
Elaine Helyer
BDMLR Buchan Medic
Click
on images to enlarge |
|
|
|
4 MILLIONTH
LAND ROVER DONATED TO THE BORN FREE FOUNDATION IS ‘ON THE
MOVE’
Wednesday 8 August, 2007
Joanna Lumley accepted the 4 millionth
vehicle*, a Discovery 3, on behalf of the international wildlife
and conservation charity, the Born Free Foundation in July and now,
it is ready to take up its role as the ’Rapid Response Rescue’
vehicle.
On Wednesday, 8 August, the keys to the ‘Rapid Response Rescue’
vehicle will be handed over to Born Free’s partner, British
Divers Marine Life Rescue for deployment across the UK and Europe.
Will Travers, Born Free’s Chief Executive, notes: "This
important vehicle will enable us and BDMLR to carry out important
frontline conservation and animal welfare missions at will. Without
Land Rover’s support we simply would not be able to reach
some of the off-road remote destinations or tackle some of the rescues
that are a vital part of our work.”
Born Free has been one of Land Rover’s Global Sponsorship
Partners since 2002. The sponsorship includes financial and vehicle
support in the UK, Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa and Sri Lanka.
In 2006 Land Rover’s support contributed to the rescue and
relocation of three lions from a circus in France to Shamwari in
South Africa. This summer the ‘Rapid Response Rescue’
vehicle will help in the treatment and release of stranded or abandoned
marine mammals, especially Common and Grey seals, who frequently
get into trouble along Britain’s shores during the breeding
season.
Alan Knight, Chairman of BDMLR will accept the vehicle and take
it to Uckfield where it will be further prepared for its journey
to Cornwall. Several major threats to the seal pups include being
separated from their mothers too early sometimes through being disturbed
by the public. The possible malnutrition they then face can threaten
their long term survival.
( * - initial report HERE
)
Press Release in full - HERE
Image : from left - Edd Thatcher Born
Free Foundation, Will Travers CEO Born Free Foundation, Alan Knight
Chairman BDMLR, Trevor Weeks National Coordinator BDMLR.
Image copyright Born Free Foundation/BDMLR
Highland
Seal Hospital Update
6th August
Latest arrivals:
Gerry
Female - 10.5kg age: estimated 10 - 14 days.
Arrived
at the hospital at 12.20am on the 25th July after being picked up
the previous afternoon by Dougie from Inverness SSPCA. Gerry had
been seen lying on a rocky shore for most of the day and on inspection
by the SSPCA was found to be quite small and thin, and so was uplifted
and driven to my home in Garve to then be transported to the unit.
Upon inspection it was found that she had a badly swollen face with
the top left of her mouth and the underside right being the worse
areas. There was no evidence of trauma and so she immediately started
treatment. She weighed in at 10.5kg. Gerry has now finished her
treatment and thankfully she looks normal.
Grant
Male, 9.8kg, estimated age 10 days
Grant
was picked up by medic Iain French on the 29th July from Poolewe
where he had been reported lying on the shore for most of the day.
On inspection by Iain he found a very thin, lethargic pup and made
the right decision to uplift. Iain met us on the road just before
Ullapool and we transferred him to our van for the journey to the
Seal Hospital. On arrival we found a very snappy pup once let out
of the kennel and worryingly found that he had a cloudy area over
the pupils in both eyes. These were only slight but if still infected
and not detected could rapidly lead to blindness if it hadn’t
already, though we were confident he could see, even if just a bit.
We assessed the eyes by staining them with a eye stain that is green
and when flushed out, basically if still infected the cloudy area
will stay green. Thankfully the area didn’t take up the stain
and we could just treat with antibiotics to make sure it goes away.
Now after a week he is a lot calmer and the cloudy areas are barely
visible.
I have also had a
fair bit of help over the last two weeks that I am extremely grateful
for.
Cheers
Jamie Dyer
BDMLR Highland Seal Hospital Manager
Seal
rescue – Mappleton, East Yorkshire
Thursday August 2nd 2007
The
seal later to be named Tilney was found on the beach at Mappleton,
East Yorkshire, early in the morning by a vet who was walking his
dog on this
very popular dog-walking beach. As he just happened to be a vet
from the practice that deals with our casualties, he fortunately
knew something about seals and, seeing that it was very flat and
covered with flies, realised that it needed bringing in and so arrived
at work that morning with their first patient of the day.
Which
is where I came in. Later that morning I received a call from Sue
at HQ asking if I was available for the transport relay down to
the RSPCA Hospital
at East Winch. I arranged to borrow a crate to transport him in,
contacted Russell with an e.t.a for Holdingham Roundabout at Sleaford,
where the exchange would take place, and set off for the vet’s.
It’s just as well I got
the puncture before I picked the seal up – it was a hot day
and I’d hate to have had a poor sick seal in a broken-down
car! – but eventually I was back on the road again and arrived
at the vet’s surgery somewhat later than planned. When I saw
the seal – a small, pale-coloured Common Seal pup –
I was immediately concerned as he showed absolutely no interest
and made little resistance to being picked up and placed in the
travelling crate.
The journey as far as Lincoln
was uneventful until I reached the city – and major roadworks!
I only know one route to Holdingham and my TomTom didn’t offer
any alternatives so I just had to sit there, air-con on, and crawl
my way slowly south. I should point out that the seal was very ill
and had the most appalling diarrhoea and the smell inside my car
was indescribable! I met up with Russell as pre-arranged at the
garage at Holdingham roundabout. By this time the seal was obviously
very sick indeed and again made no attempt to resist transfer from
one cage to another for transport on to East Winch. Russell continued
on south and I set off back home.
He later contacted me to say
that the seal had been delivered safely and was running a temperature
and on a drip. That weekend he contacted me again to say that Tilney
had taken a turn for the worse, developing haemorrhagic diarrhoea
and severe vomiting, his temperature had crashed off the bottom
end of the thermometer scale and couldn’t be raised, despite
a warm drip and heat lamp and the decision had been taken to euthanise
him on humane grounds. The post-mortem revealed severe pneumonia
and haemorrhagic enteritis.
It’s always sad to lose
one but this little one had suffered enough and hopefully what has
been learned from him will go on to help other seals.
My most grateful thanks to
the vets and staff at the Swanbridge Veterinary Hospital, to Russell,
and to the staff at East Winch, for all their dedicated care and
commitment to our cause.
Dianne
Davies
BDMLR Medic, Yorkshire and Humber
Photo
: Tilney in the back of Russell’s van ready for the second
leg of his journey. Click on image to enlarge.
Seal
pup call out – Barmston, North Humberside
Thursday August 2nd 2007
I was called at 10am on Thursday morning by
Sue White who informed me there was a seal on Barmston beach which
was tangled in netting. Paul Reaney-Sygrove was on his way from
Beverley & I was asked to go & support him & take the
transport equipment that we presumed would be required.
On arrival at the scene I found Paul who was
carrying the common seal pup up the beach. He had found the pup
who was still tangled in netting, with the member of the public,
Stuart, who had called BDMLR. The pup was extremely distressed &
was having difficulty breathing as the net was wrapped very tightly
around its head & nose. Paul acted quickly & disentangled
the pup whose breathing quickly started to return to normal.
The local fisherman whose net the seal had
become entangled then informed Paul that he had the right to shoot
the pup! Paul immediately decided he needed to remove the pup from
the location & this is when I met him.
Once we were in a quiet, safe place we gave
the pup a thorough assessment. She had a fairly good body weight
& a temperature of 36.8, her reflexes were
good & her eyes, nose & breathing were
all fine. Amazingly even though she had been thoroughly entangled
she didn't have a mark on her.
We decided to relocate the pup to a quiet beach
nearby but hopefully far enough away from the fisherman with the
gun. We decided to name her Barmy as she was found on Barmston beach.
Once released Barmy happily moved to the sea & swam away.
Thanks to Sue White for her support as always,
Stuart for waiting with the pup & helping to free it from the
netting & Paul Reany-Sygrove for his quick thinking & excellent
decision making on his first beach rescue as a Marine Mammal Medic.
Tracy Guild
MMM Filey
N.Yorkshire
%20%20%20(cut%20by%20netting).JPG)
%20%20(cut%20by%20netting).JPG)
%20%20(cut%20by%20netting).JPG)
%20%20(cut%20by%20netting).JPG)
