The Vancouver Aquarium’s Marine Mammal Rescue Centre is welcoming its first seal pup patient of the year.
The tiny, premature male, dubbed “Emerald” after the month of May’s birthstone, was found alone on Anvil Island in Howe Sound on Wednesday.
The pup weighs just 6.8 kilograms, which is severely underweight, according to the Aquarium.
WATCH: Rescued harbour seals at Vancouver Aquarium’s marine mammal centre
In a media release, the Aquarium said staff spent Wednesday observing the pup in the wild to ensure that it truly was alone, before making the decision to rescue him.
“This is the start of pupping season along our coast, so at this time of year, you’ll sometimes see newborn pups left to rest while their mothers forage for food,” said rescue centre manager Lindsaye Akhurst.
“The mother will usually come back. We ask those who find a seal pup not to touch it and to keep their pets away. Call us, we’ll assess the animal, then decide if a rescue is needed.”
The Aquarium said Emerald was transported to the rescue centre, where he’s now being fed nutrient-rich formula five times a day, and being watched closely by a team of veterinarians.
Emerald was found with remenants of his umbilical cord still attached, and is still covered in soft fur, known as lanugo, associated with premature pups.
Akhurst said his condition remains critical.
“It’s always a more challenging recovery for premature pups,” she said.
“They miss important early nutrition and support from mom, so they’re not off to a great start.”
The Aquarium says it rescues and rehabilitates about 150 animals per year, most of them harbour seal pups. However it’s also treated whales, dolphins, porpoises, sea otters and elephant seals. The majority of the animals are released back into the wild, it said.
2017 was a record year for the facility, with nearly 200 animals treated — 191 of them Harbour seals. The previous record was in 2005, when they treated 174 seals.
In order to fund its operations, the centre also runs a program that lets the public symbolically “adopt” rescued seal pups.
Anyone who finds a marine mammal in distress is asked not to approach it, and to call the rescue centre for help at 604.258.SEAL (7325).
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