Injured seal dies after selfish people scare it back into the sea while trying to take selfies with it
A hurt seal that ended up on a British beach passed away after being frightened by people trying to take photos.
The little grey seal had suffered serious damage to one of its flippers caused by a fishing line that had penetrated its bone.
The poor animal first laid on the beach at West Bexington, Dorset a week ago.
However, it had no choice but to return to the water after becoming frightened by selfie-taking people.
Hours later at dusk, the seal came ashore a second time when most people had left.
The mammal was spotted by a worried member of the public who alerted the RSPCA.
Update – the injured seal pup that was chased back into the sea yesterday by people taking photos has been safely confined and taken to our wildlife hospital – thanks to @BDMLR and Insp. Ken Snook #helpourwildlife @RSPCA_official @RSPCAWestHatch 78 pic.twitter.com/6hvijibf43
— RSPCA Frontline (@RSPCA_Frontline) November 25, 2019
Local wildlife expert Derek Davey took care of the seal for a while but said the delay in proper treatment would have caused the pup prolonged agony.
The seal passed away at the RSPCA’s center at West Hatch, near Somerset.
Mr. Davey said:
‘Taking photographs and crowding around it made it go back into the water to get away.
‘Luckily it later came ashore again hours later. It would still have been the same result had it been rescued earlier but it must have endured quite a slow death by going back into the sea.
‘It had a fishing line around its flipper which had dug into the bone and the wound was infected.’
The RSPCA stated that the seal was in an ’emaciated condition’ and had a bone infection.
A spokesman for the charity added:
‘The wildlife vet cleaned the wound out but the infection was already in the bone and so the decision was made to put the seal to sleep based on the extent of this injury and the impact it would have on the future of the seal.
‘The vet said the wound was narrow, and deep, and although they did not find anything within the wound which could have caused it, it is thought something like fishing line had been wrapped around it.’
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