A seal pup was an unexpected visitor to a pub in Bristol, and even more unbelievable is the fact that it was last seen and tagged 300 miles north in Scotland.
The seal pup was first spotted near The Old Lock and Weir pub in Hanham on Sunday 2 January, but after making a call to the RSPCA, were advised to leave it alone and it returned to the water.
But shortly afterwards, the pup reappeared near the kitchen hatch of the pub and this time the staff were asked to keep the animal there until experts arrived. They used pallets to safely contain him until members of the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) could attend the scene.
The seal pup was taken to RSPCA West Hatch in Somerset for a spot of rest and recuperation before it is released back into the wild, due to it being underweight – it was 33kg when it was tagged in June 2021 and was now only 14.8kg – and suffering from seal pox.
Photo credit: The Old Lock and Weir
