Rescued seal on road to recovery
The young seal, who has been named Mtunzi, after the area he was found and rescued in, is approximately one-year-old and is doing much better.
IT’s very much a case of all’s well that ends well for a young Southern African fur seal that has been seen in our coastal waters for some time now.
He was spotted in the Mtunzi area last Tuesday at about 2pm by a local lad, Andrew Jones.
ALSO READ : WATCH: Jello the seal leaves South Coast shores and heads to new home in PE
Andrew made a video of the seal and showed it to his mother when he got home. She in turn then contacted local Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife member, Nigel Eady.
Mr Eady drove down to the beach every day to see if he could spot the seal and catch it, but the small seal proved elusive.
On Saturday, November 16, a Durban crew from Sea World came down to Mtunzi Park to try and catch the young seal to rehabilitate it.
Hours passed, and at 4pm that afternoon they were eventually successful.
“The team had to use slow movements to catch the seal because once they got too close, he went back into the water,” explained Mr Eady.
Earlier this month on November 9, the seal was first spotted by lifeguards at Amanzimtoti beach.
“He looked healthy and strong,” said Ann Kunz of uShaka Sea World.
“As time passed, we received many calls from concerned members of the public who reported seeing the seal at various spots along the KZN South Coast. Some even sent pictures of him through to the KZN stranding network. Unfortunately, we witnessed his condition deteriorating as he was visibly losing weight.”
The seal was not fit enough to travel back to his home grounds around the waters of Port Elizabeth and Namibia.
After he was caught last Saturday, he was admitted to the uShaka Sea World rehabilitation facility.
The young seal, who has been named Mtunzi, after the area he was found and rescued in, is approximately one-year-old and is doing much better.
“Upon admission, he was given an external examination and was found to have a small laceration on his face and what appears to be an abscess on his hind flipper,” said Ms Kunz.
“As he was dehydrated, undernourished and suffering from an infection in his mouth, he was immediately put on antibiotics and given hydration fluids.”
Just one day after his rescue, the young seal began eating again.
Ms Kunz added that Mtunzi isn’t a fussy eater and enjoys almost everything they offer him including pilchards, hake, mass banker, corvino and squid.
“We will need to wait a little while before he is strong enough for us to conduct a full medical which will include bloods, x-rays and an ultrasound,” she said.
Only then will they be able to get a better understanding of Mtunzi’s condition and treatment plan.
A word of thanks goes to the many community members who assisted the team and Ezemvelo in ensuring that the young seal was rescued and given the opportunity to recover at the uShaka Sea World rehabilitation facility.
HAVE YOUR SAY
Like the South Coast Herald’s Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram
To receive our FREE email newsletter, click HERE
