Another
East Yorkshire Seal Rescue by Tracy Guild
28th Jan
On Sunday the 28th January at 11am when I was just deciding that
I couldn't put the housework off any longer I received a text from
Alan about a pup on Bridlington beach. After contacting Alan to
let him know I could go (anything to get out of housework!) I rang
Mrs Rimmer who had called the pup in.
She gave me excellent
instructions to find the pup & I quickly set out to Bev Drayton's
house to pick both her the 
seal
bag up. I arrived at the same time as Gary Bolton another medic
& so the three of us set out to Bridlington. We quickly located
the pup & did a full assessment. Although the pup had no visible
injury he was very thin & flat. It was very clear that the pup
would need to come in but unfortunately Sea Life was full so it
would have to be a trip to East Winch. We contacted Alan who started
to organise a stop off at the vets & someone to hand the pup
over to.
On the way back to
the car with the seal we managed to see 3 children from St Mary's
Primary School, where I work. The children were thrilled to see
a rescue in action as they had all had an educational talk from
Bev & helped to raise funds & collect towels for BDMLR.
They stood by & watched us making sure the pup was happy &
secure before we set off. 
On arrival at the
vets the pup was tubed and basically prepared for the long journey
ahead. We then continued on over the Humber Bridge passed Lincoln
to our meeting point with Russel & his wife. We passed on all
the relevant details from the vets & wished Russel good luck
with the rest of the journey. At last we could put the heating on
& thaw out...
I finally arrived home at 8.15pm having travelled
nearly 250miles. At least I had a decent excuse for not doing the
housework!! ;-P
The latest information I have received about
the seal is that he is now called Chisel & he weighed in at
just over 14K.
Thanks to all those involved with the rescue
Mrs Rimmer, Alan, Bev, Gary, Russel & his wife, Swanbridge Vets
& East Winch.
Tracy Guild
MMM Filey
Yorkshire
Police
officer recognised for helping at stranding, Scotland
On Saturday 20th January
2007, Grampian police officer, PC Calvert was given a certificate
of recognition for the excellent role he played in supporting a
porpoise in the water whilst the BDMLR team went to get equipment
to perform a re-float.
PC Calvert spotted the porpoise, on
the 20th July 2006, stuck on a sandbar at the Scotstown beach in
St. Fergus whilst carrying out quad patrols as part of the Dune
Watch initiative. He immediately contacted the police office to
raise the alarm, which in turn contacted the local BDMLR Coordinator
Andrew Ireland.
BDMLR Buchan Co-ordinator, Andrew
Ireland said “With the help of PC Calvert, the porpoise was
successfully re-floated after a few attempts and this would not
have been possible without PC Calvert’s quick thinking to
raise the alarm and also his dedication to help this stranded marine
mammal.”
“PC Calvert was knee deep in
water and waves were breaking over him as he supported the porpoise
in an upright position to keep the blowhole free of water. All this
time he never even gave it a second thought that he was in his police
uniform which was completely soaked in sea water.”
“I would like to personally
thank PC Calvert and the support provided by Grampian police during
the early morning rescue, BDMLR had limited resources due to the
time of morning and without their support we would have struggled”
Read the original rescue report -
HERE
St
Fergus Pup Rescue, Scotland by Andy Ireland
26th January
[click
on images to enlarge]
This morning at 1040
a member of the public contacted Andy Ireland (BDMLR Buchan Coordinator)
to report a 
seal
pup that was on Scotstown Beach, approximately one mile from the
car parking area towards Peterhead.The pup was ‘abandoned’
and high up in the dunes.
At 1045 a group text
was sent to the entire team to find out who would be available to
go and assess the pup, Angi Long (BDMLR Buchan Medic) and Elaine
Helyer (BDMLR Buchan Volunteer) both replied and advised that they
could be there within 20 minutes. Angi called in on route to collect
seal kit from Andy and headed off to
meet Elaine Helyer at the parking area.
On arrival at the
scene, the pair was greeted by two members of the MOD police who
were interested as to what they were up to. After an explanation
that it was all innocent and they were actually on route to a sear
that had been reported, the police officers were happy to tag along.
The pup was found to be a Grey pup, weaned, and had minor damage
to the flippers. The temperature was 37.8 and the pup was slightly
malnourished and underweight. Angi and Elaine decided to call the
pup Pluto based on our Disney character theme.
Angi contacted Andy
to advise him of the pup’s condition and that they were uplifting
for further assessment at 
Grampian
Wildlife Trust. Andy contacted Lawrence of Grampian Wildlife Trust
to book a pen and he asked that
we just place it in the outdoor pen on arrival. The pup was placed
in a seal bag and carried by the two police officers back to the
car park (1 mile). Elaine took the pup to Grampian Wildlife Trust
and we will follow up on the seals condition once Lawrence has vet
checked it.
After a full Vet check
it was confirmed that Pluto was a grey seal pup in good condition
with no infections, free from diarrhoea, but did have some minor
cuts and grazes to the flippers. Pluto is self feeding and it is
likely that he will be released back to the area later this week.
Thanks to member of
the public for reporting the pup, Andy Ireland (BDMLR Buchan Coordinator),
Angi Long (BDMLR Buchan Medic), PC 3943 Scullion and PC 4581 McGarry
(St. Fergus MOD Police), Lawrence Brain (Grampian Wildlife Trust).
Andy Ireland
Buchan Regional Coordinator
British Divers Marine Life Rescue
UPDATE - 31st January
‘Pluto’ has now been eleased back in
to the Buchan area.
He was released by Andy Ireland, Angi Long, Stacey
Esson and Elaine Helyer. Some younger volunteers were also present
to witness his release. He was released at 1730 in very good condition
having put on some weight whilst at GWT from Friday through to tonight.
Andy Ireland
Sowerby's
beaked whale dead stranding, Scotland by Ian French
26th January
Marine Biologist and
marine mammal medic Ian french was called out to the stranding of
a small whale on the shores of loch ewe on Friday the 26th January.
Unfortunately this turned out to be a dead stranding, probably within
the last 48 hours. Initial id was thought to be a young northern
bottle nose whale, later in better conditions this identification
was ratified as a sowerby's beaked whale.
The SAC at Inverness were contacted and an autopsy was carried out
early on the 27th,this revealed the female was heavily pregnant
with a well developed foetus. The foetus showed a pronounced melon
and has cast some doubt as to the cetaceans identity,i t may be
a true's beaked whale.
Samples were taken of all the major organs, none of which gave any
clues to cause of death,i n fact all signs indicate a very healthy
whale. The rostrum and jaw bones were heavily smashed and shattered,
maybe the whale was hit by something or was this caused as it was
washed ashore?
The foetus, skull and tissue samples were taken back to the labs
in Inverness for analysis and a second set of samples are to be
taken to the natural history museum London.
Ian French
Gairloch Marine Life Centre & Cruises + Marine Mammal Medic
Images
copyright Ian French - click on thumbnail to enlarge |
|
|
|
UPDATE
Following a more thorough examination of
the stranded whale on Saturday morning the cetacean is now almost
certainly a Sowerby's Beaked Whale,female 4.92m long. an autospy
was carried out by the SAC guys and we then discoverd that sadly
it was also heavily pregnant, not far from term.
Lungs etc all proved to be healthy. There was massive bone damage
to the rostrum,and skull.not sure whether this was the cause of
the death yet. The damage may have been caused whilst being washed
up on the rocky shore. Stomach contents were mainly otoliths,of
which i have some and will attempt to identify the fish as soon
as possible. Samples of all the major organs were taken along with
the skull and still born foetus.these will be analysed back at the
labs in Inverness, a set will also be taken to the natural history
museum London. The foetus has made us doubt the whale type, so it
could possibly be a true's beaked whale as the foetus showed more
of a pronounced bump on the head than its mother, this should be
confirmed by the lab guys in London.
Ian French
Porpoise
attacked, Kineff, Scotland
25th
January
Local
fisherman Kevin Birse phoned me on 25th
January to tell me of the event that he had witnessed earlier in
the day.
He was out in his boat just after 12pm, off Kinneff when he was
aware of a group of 10 or so porpoises throwing what he
initially though was a salmon around in the water. When he approached,
the adults headed north and floating on the surface was a young
porpoise calf. He pulled it into his boat where it gave a final
tremble and died. It was foaming at the mouth and had suffered major
injuries which were bleeding.
Later he brought the body to mine where extensive rake wounds were
in evidence along the sides and 
underneath
the body. It was approx. 1m in length.
Rebecca Chambers
Marine Mammal Medic
Montrose / Arbroath Area
Bob Reid from SAC was notified and was to be picking the porpoise
up on Monday, However this may now be as late as wednesday as Bob
will be going over to Poolewe to perform a post mortem on the Northern
Bottlenose Whale that was found today 26th janaury. Updates to follow
later and confirmation if the porpoise was killed by its own kind
or by dolphins as suspected.
Elaine Roft
Montrose / Arbroath Area Co-ordinator
Whale
rescue team helping oiled birds at MV Napoli
25th
January 2007
Volunteers from British Divers Marine Life
Rescue are continuing to rescue seabirds affected by the oil, which
has escaped from the stricken ship MV Napoli. The volunteers are
more commonly involved with marine mammal rescue but have offered
their assistance in this latest wildlife drama.
The volunteers have been scouring the 18 mile
Chesil Beach area on the Dorset coast for the passed four days and
will continue to work with the RSPCA to rescue birds and transport
them to the RSPCA’ rescue centre at Taunton.
BDMLR Marine Mammal Medics have so far rescued
over 500 birds from the 18-mile stretch of shingle. The birds, mostly
guillemots, have been found coated in a thick mixture of fuel oil,
diesel and lubricating oil which have all leaked from the now infamous
ship.
The volunteers have been collecting the birds,
transporting them along Chesil Beach to a collection point at the
Chesil Beach Visitor Centre. Here the birds are given first aid
before being transported to the wildlife hospital.
On Wednesday (24th) BDMLR started using an
‘Argo’ vehicle to provide better access along the shingle
beach. The vehicle is being used to transport the birds from the
volunteers to the collection centre at an increased rate. BDMLR
has taken advice from English Nature and will ensure its ‘all
terrain’ vehicle does not damage any of the protected plants
on the SSSI location.
BDMLR Area\Coordinator, Martyn Dean, said “With
the Argo vehicle we should be able to provide a more efficient and
faster response for these poor birds. At the moment it is quite
strenuous work for our volunteers to patrol the huge length of Chesil
Beach and this vehicle will be or great use.”
Tony Woodley, BDMLR
Director, said, “Our team of volunteers have been doing a
tremendous job and have been working well with the local RSPCA officers
to provide the best service for these poor birds. We are all hoping
for fine weather so that the salvage company can remove the remaining
3000 gallons of fuel oil from the Napoli as, if this were to escape,
it would cause an ecological nightmare along this very sensitive
and highly protected coastline.”
[ PDF Press Release
version - HERE
]
|
Pics copyright
- Mike Hannon (click on image to enlarge)
|
|
|
|
Report
on Seal Pup rescue, Hornsea by Ian Shields
22nd January 2007
Got a text from Alan at around 13.30 asking if I
could attend seal pup reported to have had a head injury at Hornsea
beach. On arrival at the beach I met a couple who directed me to
a seal near steps to the beach. ‘Great’ that’s
a bonus I thought. After a quick assessment I could see no head
injury which I thought odd, until another member of the public,
Keith (the man who originally reported it) advised me of a second
pup around a mile further along. I was joined on the beach by Freddie
and Diane shortly afterwards with a seal bag. After speaking to
Alan we decided to concentrate on the injured pup. So off we marched
in pursuit of Keith to where the injured pup lay.
He looked in a bad
way, an injury to the left side of his head and right eye. We put
the seal into the bag with the tide fast coming in, so Freddie nicknamed
him ‘Minutes to spare’. Later he was renamed Liquorice
by the 
staff
at Scarborough sea Life centre. On our way back to the car, we came
across a puffin obviously in some distress so the Sea Life Centre
asked us to bring that in too, he was named ‘By The Way’
by Freddie.
Before setting off we checked on the first seal
and were advised it would be monitored over the next 24 hours or
so.
We set off for Scarborough, the puffin sat on my knee, Freddie driving
and the seal in the back. On arrival at Scarborough we were met
by the staff who took charge of Liquorice. He weighed approx 14
kg and was thought to have lung worm and internal bleeding, but
Derek at the centre said he hoped he would make a full recovery
as he was quite feisty.
The RSPCA lady examined the puffin and decided it
was ok. When Freddie asked what would happen to it, she replied
‘I will take it to Bempton and throw it off the cliffs into
the thermal air currents’. We couldn’t believe this
after nursing it for 50 miles in the car!!!
Tuesday 23rd January
I had just got in from work and was discussing the
previous days events with my wife – Sallie -, when a text
came in asking for someone to attend the seal pup from the day before
at Hornsea and take it to Scarborough.
As Sallie was off
work I asked her if she would like to come for the ride. She offered
to answer my phone on 
route
to Hornsea whilst I was driving – A big thanks to her for
that-. On the way we were informed by Alan that Scarborough could
not take the pup as it was full.
On arriving at Hornsea
we located the pup – it hadn’t moved far from yesterday
and looked considerably weaker – and stayed with it until
Freddie arrived with the seal bag shortly afterwards. After putting
the pup in the seal bag (without much protest from her) we were
asked if we would take her to Swanbridge vets in Swanland. Sallie
and I set off there, and on arrival were looked after by the staff
– hot cup of coffee – whilst Sheila (named by Sallie
and later renamed at East Winch Wildlife Centre Norfolk as Blow
Torch) was given a much needed feed, as she weighed only 16.1kg.
Sue from HQ was in
touch with us and asked if we could take the pup to Holdingham near
Sleaford, where we would meet Russell and he would take her the
rest of the journey to East Winch. This all went very smoothly and
we met Russell as planned. Later that night Russell informed us
that they had arrived safely and Blow Torch was doing well.
Sallie and I decided, after checking with the Sea
Life Centre to visit Liquorice on Wednesday as he was my first seal
pup rescue. They informed us he was doing fine and was expected
to be there for a couple of months before being released after making
a full recovery.
I spoke to Sue at HQ today about Blow Torch and was told she too
was doing fine and also expected to make a full recovery.
Ian Shields
- Marine Mammal Medic
Two
seals and a Puffin !
22nd January
On Monday 22nd of January Alan alerted us of
a call from a member of the public in regard to a seal in Hornsea
who appeared to have a head injury.
I picked Dianne (medic) up and we met Ian (medic)
on the beach. It was a cold late afternoon, windy and the tide was
coming in fast. The seal appeared quite ok, no injuries, lively
and apparently going towards
the sea. We decided that we were happy to let her stay and started
to make our way back when a member of the public alerted us that
there was another seal about a mile down the beach. We moved fast!
The tide was coming in fast it was getting darker and the seal was
definitely at least a mile down the beach!!. Ian ran ahead with
Keith (member of the public) as the waves did not look friendly.
They put the seal into the seal bag and we
all rushed back,. On the way back I found a puffin huddled up on
the sand near the water and picked him up as he did not look very
alert.
Back on the beach
we quickly assessed the seal, who had a head injury and decided
to take her ( actually 
him)
to the Sea Life Centre in Scarborough. So Ian , "Minutes to
spare"(the seal) "By the way" (the puffin) and myself
got in the car and started our journey to Scarborough. "Minutes
to spare" will make a full recovery. He was dehydrated, wheezing
a bit and underweight .The injury was not too recent but infected
in parts.
"By the way" was launched from Bempton
Cliffs on the same night as it was explained that puffins cannot
take off from the shore or walk. S/he will be ok.
Thanks to Keith (member of the public) for
staying with the seal for a long time and for helping us to find
him quickly. Thanks to the staff of the Sea Life Centre and everybody
else who helped.
The day after we received another call alerting
that the seal that we had left the day before was still on the beach
and did not look very well. The night had also been very cold and
snow was forecast for the day. Ian
offered to go back to Scarborough. I met him at the beach and the
seal had deteriorated quite visibly. We put the seal into the bag.
Due to the SeaLife Centre being full, Ian drove the pup to the Swanbridge
Vet
practice to be tubed and after a check up Ian and his wife Sally
drove the seal to Lincoln where Russell New another medic picked
her up and took her to East Winch Wildlife Hospital.
Thanks again to everybody who helped in the
rescue.
Freddie Taylor
(Marine Mammal Medic)
Worried
public call for help – Easington
21st January 2007
We received a call from our eldest son’s boss asking for help.
He informed us that there was a seal pup on the Humber bank in Easington
with an infected eye. We arrived fifteen minutes later to assess
the seal. Apart from having a weepy eye it was in excellent health,
fat and alert. Going on past experience and advice we decided that
the salty sea water would be the best course of treatment for the
infected eye. I have to admit that I was so glad this seal did not
need moving, Neil would defiantly have been getting the biting end
of this one, it was extremely aggressive, which I know is a positive
sign but not if you want to jump on top of it with only a towel
to protect you. We sat and monitored the seal for 1 hour and 40
minutes and as high tide hit it went back into the river.
Lisa, Neil and Chris Wray
Marine Mammal Medics
East Yorkshire
Seal
rescued from someone’s bath!!! Honest!!!!!!!!
19th January 2007
We received a call from Alan Knight asking if we could attend a
seal. He had received a call from the RSPCA saying that a member
of the public had ‘rescued’ a seal pup from the beach
and put it in her bath. After a few questioning comments we set
off to Mappleton to assess the seal and the validity of the bath
story. Well yes the seal had been brought up from the beach in a
wheelbarrow and put in the house bath. The lady explained that she
was concerned about the condition of the seal and there were a lot
of people and dogs about which increased her anxiety with regards
to the seals wellbeing. She thought that the seal needed to be in
water and in the warmth and it was with good intention that she
put it in her bath. When we arrived at the house the seal had been
moved back outside in the wheelbarrow. The RSPCA had spoken to the
lady and with their advice she put the seal outside.
On initial inspection the seal looked relatively healthy, clear
eyes and mouth, very alert (aggressive). Assessing further it became
clear that all was not well for this little seal, it sounded full
of fluid when breathing and its shape did not appear right. It was
fat in the middle but thin around the neck and back. After speaking
to Linzi at Scarborough Sealife Centre we agreed that it needed
transporting. So off we went, with Adam in the back of the van monitoring
the seal.
Once assessed by Linzi and Helen at Scarborough it was clear how
unwell ‘Snickers’ (the now named seal) was. Although
it was feisty Linzi thought this may be due to internal injuries
or infection causing pain. Snickers had hyperthermia and pneumonia.
Antibiotics were given, tube fed, placed under a heat lamp and assessed
throughout the night (yet another sleepless night for Linzi and
Helen).
Thank you to Linzi and Helen for there support and dedication as
always. Sadly we were informed by Linzi that Snickers had died 2
days later after initial improvement.
Lisa, Neil and Adam Wray
Marine Mammal Medic
East Yorkshire
click
on images to enlarge |
|
|
A rescue observed
by a non BDMLR member
I was enjoying an afternoon off work when Ian my
husband and mammal medic got a message that a seal he had seen the
previous day was still in the same position on Hornsea beach and
needed to be taken to the Sea Life centre at Scarborough.
Ian suggested I go along for the ride and I agreed, a straightforward
trip to collect the seal pup and onward to Scarborough.
Off we set, and as we approached the beach we received
a phone call from Alan the regional co-ordinator informing us that
Scarborough was full and could not accommodate our little seal pup.
Whilst we waited for instructions we wrapped up against the snow
and hail and headed down to where the pup was. She looked ok with
no visible injury but did not want to go near the water. In the
meantime Freddie Taylor, another medic, arrived with the Seal bag
and Sue White from HQ rang to ask if we could take Sheila (as I
called her - later to be renamed as Blow Torch by East Winch staff)
to Swanland vets for a feed and a check over by the vet.
Of course we agreed and Ian put the pup into the
seal bag and into the car and off we went. We drove to Swanland
with the car heating off and the windows open arriving like 2 blocks
of ice but at least Blow Torch seemed ok. The Vet and Nurses at
Swanland were fantastic and warmed us up with a cup of coffee while
the vet checked over our pup.
Sue rang again and asked if we could take Blow Torch over the Humber
Bridge to Lincoln. We of course agreed and I was by this time smitten
with little Blow Torch and wanted to help Ian if I could.
We travelled through Lincoln at 5pm rush hour with Blow Torch in
the boot of the car with the windows open and our bobble hats pulled
down over frozen ears. We met Russell (another medic) at Holdingham
and transferred Blow Torch over to him for onward transportation
to East Winch RSPCA hospital. I blew her a kiss and wished her well
as Russell drove off with her.
I wanted to write this piece to express my admiration
for all the men and women who are prepared to do this kind of thing
and think it nothing out of the ordinary. Also to Alan and Sue for
their help along the way. Our trip to ‘Scarborough’
had turned into an epic but it was worth every minute.
It was really heart warming to see everyone working together to
try and help little Blow Torch. It was certainly an afternoon I
will never forget.
Sallie Shields,
a very proud wife of a BDMLR medic Ian Shields.
Sue has kindly informed
us the pup is doing fine and a happy ending looks very likely.
Injured pup
rescued from remote cove, Cornwall
16th January 2007
Late in the afternoon,
Coordinator Dave Jarvis received a call about an injured pup at
Porth Meor Cove near Porthcothan, North of Newquay. Assistant Coordinator
Jenny Haley, with Medics Lisa Clarke and Dan Jarvis met up at the
farm belonging to the caller with rescue equipment while Dave and
Medic Lesley Jarvis loaded up the seal cage and got underway.
Jenny, Lisa and Dan
had to follow the caller and his family in their car down a tractor
access track, through a field and then down another track at the
other end before it descended into the cove. As it was dark, torches
were used to locate the pup, which swiftly took flight down the
rocky beach towards the water, but was quickly headed off by the
Medics and restrained by Jenny for a health examination.
Even before jumping
the pup, it was already obvious that it was malnourished, and closer
inspection revealed a large laceration over the right shoulder,
possibly caused by fishing net, and a large open wound on the lower
right abdomen. The temperature was normal. The pup was tube fed
rehydration fluids, put inside the seal bag and removed from the
cove back to the farm.
Once back in phone
signal range, the National Seal Sanctuary was informed and confirmed
that they would take it in, while the pup was transferred to the
seal cage brought by Dave and Lesley, and then further inspected
by Medic/veterinarian Sean Langton. Dan then drove the pup down
to Gweek where it underwent a clinical examination and was named
‘Smurf’.
Dave Jarvis
Cornwall Coordinator
British Divers Marine Life Rescue
Common
Seal Rescue – Peterhead Lido
by Andy Ireland
16th January
At 18.10 Stacey Esson (Buchan Medic) was contacted
by a member of the public to report a seal that was very unresponsive,
and in a busy dog walking area.
Stacey headed to the
scene and was there by 18.15. Stacey had a look at the seal and
confirmed that it was 
not
behaving as it should and contacted Andy Ireland (Buchan Coordinator).
Andy got the kit together and headed down to the Peterhead Lido
where the seal was lying. On route Andy contacted Jason Cater (BDMLR
on Call) to advise that the Buchan team were attending to a seal.
[photo by Stacey Esson - click on image to
enlarge]
On arrival the seal was a juvenile Common, non-responsive
and was oblivious to the fact we were using torches to light up
the area and even that there were people around. We monitored breathing
and it was raspy and high at around 17 breaths per minute. Stacey
straddled the seal and it never put up any fight. Andy took the
temperature which was low at 34.5. The pup’s temperature was
obvious from initial examination due to its constant shivering.
We contacted Elaine Roft (Montrose Co-ordinator) to confirm the
status of uplifting. We then placed the seal in to our kennel for
uplift to Grampian Wildlife Trust in New Deer. The youngster weighed
in at around 24kg but we suspected it may have pneumonia, which
the Montrose team have been experiencing a lot with the commons
in the area.
Stacey completed the rescue by taking the seal on
to New Deer. On arrival she uploaded it in to a pen and left for
Lawrence to assess.
We can only hope that we got to this seal in time
and that it makes it through the next few days.
Thanks must go to the vigilant and quick thinking
public, Stacey Esson (Buchan Medic), Andy Ireland (Buchan Coordinator),
Jason Carter (BDMLR on Call), Elaine Roft (Montrose Co-ordinator),
and Lawrence Brain (Grampian Wildlife Trust).
Andy Ireland
Buchan Regional Coordinator
17/01/07 Andy Ireland Called Elaine Roft to discuss possibility
of bloods from this seal for reasons above. It was suggested by
SSPCA that the pup be transferred to them on Saturday so that further
tests and observations could be carried out. Updates to follow.
The pup has now been named "Minnie".
24/01/07
Common Pup uplifted from Peterhead Lido and taken to GWT then transferred
to Inverkeithing
Comment by : Romain
Pizzi BVSc MSc DZooMed FRES MACVSc(Surg) MRCVS
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons recognised specialist in Zoo
& Wildlife Medicine
"ID "Minnie"
/ "Judas" / 90
cause of death - No real answer I am afraid, as was quite autolysed
(post-mortem deterioration, the destruction of cells by their own
enzymes) when the post mortem was performed. A little thin, with
empty gut, and some generalised congestion (which may suggest a
septicaemia), but nothing else specific I'm afraid. weight was confirmed
as 15.2kg"
Grey
pup is rescued then dies, Scotland
15th January
I was out walking
by Seagreens Beach yesterday (Johnshaven), when I came across a
seal pup above the high tide mark resting on the pebbles. It saw
us, me and the dogs, before I saw it. The dogs were unaware of it.
I gathered them (the dogs) together and tied them up whilst I went
back to check the seal pup. It had already arched its rear flippers
and back and coughed at me. It appeared to be quite bright eyed
and alert but thin about the shoulders and pelvic region.However
I did notice that its breathing was probably rather laboured. It
was quite difficult to hear over the noise of the wind and the roaring
sea. I left it at its location at 1pm.
When I returned home
I phoned Volunteer Sue Horne and Medic Paul Horne, 1.45pm, to see
if they could give a second opinion and we arranged to meet at 4pm
at Seagreens after we had both met our committments. During this
time our area Co-ordinator Elaine Roft had been informed of our
intentions by Volunteer Sue Horne.During this time, Elaine had provisionally
booked a seal pen at SSPCA Middlebank and arranged a relay 
(with
teams on standby) Tayforth Co-ordinator Allan Muir and Edinburgh
Co-ordinator Nick Moore. An E.T.A would be confirmed to SSPCA staff
once the pup had been confirmed as being uplifted and a rehab candidate.
I got back to the location at 4.15pm and Medic Paul Horne had already
been down to check that the pup was still there. By now the light
was fading and the winds were gale force. We headed along the narrow,
muddy,pebbly track to the pup. It hadnt moved since lunchtime. We
decided to just uplift it. No respirations were taken or any other
health checks performed.
The weather was too
wild and there was no light to perform such. It was quite a challenge
getting the pup into the tank as both towel and tank were being
caught by the wind and taking. The pup being feisty bit my arm,
which went through coat, fleece, heavy jumper and shirt to bruise
my arm! Once in the tank we held a towel tight over the top to calm
it down and to prevent it jumping up which it initially tried to
do. Then we headed back to the van and was home in Johnshaven by
4.40.
We set off from Hillside
(Sue and Pauls House) at 5.30pm to meet Alan at Arbroath at 6pm.
The pup was still alive at the handover. Sue confirmed to Elaine
that we were on the road South so Elaine could confirm to SSPCA
that the pup was indeed being admitted to rehab.
Rebecca Chambers
Marine Mammal Medic
Montrose / Arbroath Area
15th January 2007
I picked up the pup
from Paul and Rebecca at Arbroath at 6.00pm. The pup appeared fiesty
and active, but its breathing was very laboured and rasping.
The journey was uneventful.. I stopped at Kinross service station
to notify SSPCA Middlebank of my impending arrival. The pup was
still alive at this point although its breathing was still laboured.
Upon arrival at Middlebank, the pup was found to be dead. It must
have died within the last 5 /10 minutes of the journey. I left the
pup at Middlebank for a post-mortem and informed Elaine Roft. (results
to follow).
Allan Muir
Marine Mammal Medic
Tayforth Area Co-ordinator
Update
16.01.07 Post Mortem was carried out by Romaine Pizzi (Vet for SSPCA).
Romain Pizzi
BVSc MSc DZooMed FRES MACVSc(Surg) MRCVS
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons recognised specialist in Zoo
& Wildlife Medicine
16.01.07 I was notified promptly by return that the male grey pup
named "Jan" died from severe enteritis. A bit of an unusual
case compared with other grey seals Romain informed me.
Elaine Roft
Marine Mammal Medic
Montrose / Arbroath Area Co-ordinator
.
Many thanks to Medics Rebecca Chambers, Paul Horne, ( uplift), Elaine
Roft (Area Co-ordinator), Volunteer Sue Horne (Montrose), Allan
Muir (Tayforth Co-ordinator), SSPCA Middlebank, Romain Pizzi (Vet).
Thanks also to Nick Moore (Edinburgh Co-ordinator)
Eider
duck rescue for Montrose Team
15th January
On
my way home from doing the school run I passed a duck sitting at
the bus stop on Rossie Island Road, Ferryden, Montrose. I wondered
where she might be going and noticed that the traffic was heavy
and that the double decker bus had not stopped for her. I turned
my car around and offered her a lift. I approached her slowly and
carefully and asked if she was waiting for a bus. She looked at
me for a moment then turned her gaze back down the road, looking
for the next bus I thought. We played catch at the rodside and after
a short game she got bored and decided to let me win. "Indulge
the human" I thought she muttered under her breath. She settled
on the front seat of my car and off we went. I sang old MacDonald
had a duck but she didnt want to join in. I tried a game of duck
duck goose at which point she jumped onto the floor and turned her
back on me.
As I pulled into the
Scottish Wildlife Trust (Montrose Basin) which is where I had decided
to take her, she gave me a couple of "quacks" and deposited
her fare on the car mat. I thought her generosity might have reflected
the fact that I had in fact taken her in the opposite direction
of where she wanted to go!. The ranger of the reserve checked her
over and said she was fine if not a little underweight. "yes"
I replied, she lost the weight in my car I told him!. He laughed
and said he would release her on the basin confirming that "she"
now named "jemima puddle duck" was a female eider and
off they went.
Jacque Watt
Marine Mammal Medic
Montrose / Arbroath Area
Very early
wake up call in Cornwall!
14th January 2007.
Just before 0245hrs (that’s right!) on-call
BDMLR Hotline Coordinator Jason Carter contacted Medic Dan Jarvis
(a known nocturnal creature) about a call he had just received from
a member of the public at St Ives who had happened upon a seal hauled
out at the top of Porthgwidden Beach that he was concerned about.
Dan took a dangerous course of action by waking his parents Coordinator
Dave Jarvis and Medic Lesley Jarvis, who got ready to go out. Dave
also called Coordinator Tim Bain who lives only a few minutes walk
from the beach to attend as well.
With the help of the caller, Tim was able to quickly
locate the pup up against the sea wall. Its tracks could be followed
down the beach to the point where it had exited the sea not far
below the high tide mark. Dave, Lesley and Dan joined Tim a short
time later and the pup assessed. It was found to be female, moulted,
underweight at approximately 18kg with a few minor bite injuries
and also a very snotty nose with associated laboured breathing.
The temperature was a normal 37.7C. Despite this the pup was still
very much alert and proved to be very feisty, and managed to score
a direct hit in Dan’s face with a flipper-full of sand! The
decision was made to uplift the pup and hold it for the remainder
of the night and then Dan would take it to the National Seal Sanctuary
when he started his shift there at 0800hrs. The pup was removed
from the beach to Tim’s flat, where it was tubed fluids, before
arriving at the Jarvis house just after 0500hrs.
At 0730hrs Dan transported the pup to the Sanctuary
where it was given a clinical examination. She has been named ‘Flik’
and weighed 19kg.
Dave Jarvis
Cornwall Coordinator
British Divers Marine Life Rescue
'Stardust'
rescued at Filey, Yorkshire
13th January
I received a text
from Alan Stewart on Saturday 13th January that reported a seal
with an abscess a 1/4 mile
from West Road on Filey beach. After a quick call to Alan I set
off to the beach which is about 2 minutes, by car, from my house.
I parked at the end of the beach , grabbed
my bag and set off in search of the seal, a mile later I began to
have a few doubts to the details I had received! Then a couple walking
back to Filey stopped to tell me that the seal was MUCH further
up the beach. With this news I had a dilemma. Did I return to the
car, drive to Primrose Valley & try to find it from there or
keep walking?
Eventually I decided that the best thing was
to call Bev Drayton. I explained the situation to her & she
decided that she would come out with the seal bag & meet me
at the seal.
So after about a 2
mile walk I finally got to the seal. The member of the public was
still waiting with the seal & trying to keep dogs away from
her. On first assessment of the seal she was quite alert and bright
eyed & not particularly thin. However there was a very large
abscess on her back.
Bev & Ryan soon arrived with the seal bag
& expertly jumped the seal. It was then that we established
that the seal was actually underweight & also had blood on his
back flips. We then transferred her to the seal bag & Ryan and
myself carried her up the cliff. At the car we transferred her to
the kennel & took her to Sea Life in Scarborough where she weighed
in at 16 kilos & had a temperature of 39.5. Her new name Space
Dust (Spacey for short) as all the seals at Sea Life have to be
named after sweets.
Thanks to everyone involved, Alan, Bev &
Ryan, the member of the public (sorry I didn't get your name) who
made the call & Helen at Sea Life. A special thanks to Bev for
sharing her knowledge, bringing the vital seal bag & buying
me a cuppa & a cake on the way home!!
Tracy Guild
MMM Filey
Yorkshire
Pup at a pub,
Bude, Cornwall
10th January 2007.
In the mid-afternoon, RSPCA Animal Collection Officer/BDMLR
Medic Jon Phipps contacted Area Coordinator Dave Jarvis about a
pup by Crooklets Beach, Bude. Dave passed the call over to local
Assistant Coordinator Hannah Walter to deal with and also put Medic
Dan Jarvis, who was at Newquay at the time, on standby in case it
needed to be tube fed fluids.
Hannah arrived at the site and met the original
caller on the beach, who showed her where the pup was. She assessed
it to be fully moulted male, underweight, coughing and with a deep
injury to a rear flipper. Consulting with Dave, it was decided that
the pup needed to be picked up and taken for rehabilitation at the
RSPCA Hospital West Hatch, Somerset. Hannah rescued the pup and
held it at her workplace, the Bay View Inn at Widemouth Bay, while
Jon and Dan mobilised to the scene.
When Dan arrived, he and Hannah went about assessing
the animal more in depth and treated its injuries. It was noted
to be very docile and quiet and was not at all aggressive while
being handled. The temperature was found to be within the normal
range while the deep flipper injury and other superficial bite wounds
were cleaned with hibiscrub and tetcin spray. The pup was then tubed
fluids and left to rest for a short while before Jon arrived to
transport it to West Hatch, where it weighed in at 14.75kg and was
named ‘Houdini’ after making an escape attempt once
it had arrived there!
Dave Jarvis
Cornwall Coordinator
British Divers Marine Life Rescue
Turtle
at Woolacombe, Devon
by Sarah Gardiner and Stephen Hunt
8th January
(click on the image for a full-size picture)
Saturday morning (6th January 2007, 10.30 am) Steve Hunt and myself (Sarah Gardiner) were surfing at Woolacombe beach, North Devon. We were alerted by two members of the public who had found a turtle on the beach around the high tide mark (spring high tide that morning had been around 8 ish) they requested that we take it out to deeper water as they thought it had stranded. However, we informed them that the water temperature was much too low and this wasn’t a native species and likely to be ill and weak so it would be best to get it some help and reassured them that we knew who to contact.
The
turtle had some damage to the carapace, was very small (carapace
30-35 cm in length) and extremely cold but showed signs of life.
Whilst Steve ran back to the van for his phone, I placed the turtle
on my lap to try and warm it a little, after which it became more
lively. We contacted Tony Woodley who gave us instructions on how
to administer basic first aid. Identification proved difficult,
at first we thought it may be a Kemps Ridley. We were then informed
by Tony that the best place to take the turtle would be West Hatch
RSPCA wildlife hospital near Taunton and that Shawn, a supervisor
there would meet us halfway along the A361 so we could hand the
turtle over to them. We proceeded back to our van and wrapped the
turtle in damp towels and during the journey tried to keep it at
a 30 degree angle, tail end up, so that any fluids in its lungs
would drain, a small amount of fluid did appear to come out of its
nose and mouth. We managed to meet up with Shawn near Tiverton and
handed the turtle to him and he proceeded to cover it in lubricant
to keep it moist on its journey back to the wildlife hospital.
On Sunday we were passing the wildlife hospital again and dropped in to see how things were going, they informed us that the turtle was quite malnourished and that it would take a few days to get its body temperature up to 20 C after which it could start to be fed, it also had damage to its carapace which had become infected in areas. On Monday it will be taken to Weymouth sea life centre where they have more experience with turtles and have the facilities to deal with it.
As for now we are keeping our fingers crossed that he/she will survive and hopefully be released into the sea again.
Sarah Gardiner and Stephen Hunt
BDMLR Medics.
UPDATE:
The latest species identification is that it is actually a Kemprs
Ridley turtle. They believe the turtle is approximately 1 year old
and the good news is, is that it is doing really well. They hope
to get the turtle's temperature up in the next week to 10 days before
they will begin trying to get the weight up. They don't anticipate
that the turtle will be with them very long before it is taken back
to the Gulf of Mexico for release.
Common seal pup rescue, Holland on sea by Kelly Robinson
4th January
On January 4th at about 11.30am I was busy doing some work at the vets when one of the nurses come down and told me that there was a man in reception saying that he had seen an injured seal on Holland beach. I went and spoke to him and he showed me the rough size of it and said it was a light grey colour and that he had blood around his face. I tried phoning Leon Woodrow at first but could not get through, so then I tried Faye Archell and couldn’t get through again, I kept trying to phone round different people that may be able to get down but I could not reach anyone. So once it got to my lunch break at 1pm I decided to take a walk down there. I saw a group of people standing around on the promenade; I went up to them and saw a very cute looking seal pup. I asked if anyone had phoned the RSPCA then two people approached me and said they were medics from BDMLR, these two people were Clare and Gary Hooker. They told me that they had managed to get hold of Leon and that he was on his way. I could see blood on his nose and mouth, which was probably caused buy climbing over the rocks and up the slope, I did not see the injury to his rear flipper until Neil Saban whose is a coastguard and is also a medic jumped the seal pup. The seal pup was relayed to East Winch by Clare Hooker and Ashleigh Rouse where the bite wound to the rear flipper was cleaned up and turned out to be superficial. But the pup also has a nasty mouth ulcer and is being sorted out by the staff at East Winch.
Once the seal pup was in good hands I went back to work, 10 minutes late and freezing cold but it was well worth it just to know the pup was ok.
Thank you too Gary and Clare Hooker, Leon Woodrow, Neil Saban, Ashleigh Rouse and the members of the public that reported it to me at the vets and to BDMLR.
Kelly Robinson
BDMLR – Marine Mammal Medic
'Iggy'
goes south by
Richard Bradley
6/7th January
Paula and I received a call from Irene
Pearce a Caithness Medic, she had a report from a friend that a
seal pup is laying around on a popular dog walking beach in the
area looking very lethargic, it looked like it was weaned and very
tired.
By 3.30pm some 40 minutes later we
met Irene’s friend at the car park near the beach and she
guided us over the dunes to the seal. He was laying on his side
asleep on the open beach in the sand, after an initial examination
there was no obvious signs of trauma, however eyes where very dry
and gums a little puffy. The seal was indeed very slow in its movement
and to be honest made no attempts to get away or even defend its
self while being moved to examine all of its body. It was decided;
bearing in mind how busy this beach was with dog walkers, that it
would be unwise to leave it in place so the pup was lifted/carried
in a seal bag back over the dunes.
On arrival back at my house it weighed
in at 25kg, and was fed with the idea of seeing how it was with
a good meal and a nights rest, looking at a possible release onto
a quite beach in the morning.
Morning came and although he was looking
a little brighter not in anyway mobile and the gums were still swollen.
Paula spoke with James Barnett and a trip to the vets was suggested.
At 2.00pm I arrived at Thurso vets to meet Mandy and the vet, after
a thorough examination there was no apparent problems apart from
the swollen gums and the lethargy. I informed James Barnet and he
suggested the pup was fed with fish soup overnight and some antibiotics
given to see how it was in the morning, if looking better to release
him if not then send him for rehab down the line.
Seal not looking much better this morning
so the decision is made that it need rehab in the South after breakfast
and lunch in Caithness of fish soup the seal is dispatched, with
Marine Medic Pincher Martin to be met in Inverness by Marine Medic
Alexandra Barr who would carry the seal to Focabars for its final
leg (I think that should be flipper) with Andy Ireland. Thankyou
to Mark Stevens for orgnising Iggies Rehab bed.
Richard
Bradley - BDMLR Medic
