Seal Pups Must Be Left Alone on the Beach

People should give them 50 feet of space, and remember that they are young and simply resting on the beach.

Photos courtesy: BeachConnection.net

(SALEM) - Marine wildlife officials on the Oregon coast say a baby seal on the beach near Seaside allows a good opportunity to remind the public that seal pups rest on the beach, people should give them 50 feet of space, and remember that they are young and simply resting on the beach.

The editor of Beach Connection Magazine, Andre' Hagestedt shot these photos of Tiffany Boothe and Jamie Symmonds of the Seaside Aquarium as they responded to the report of a stranded seal. They are both part of the Marine Mammal Stranding Network. One important role of this team is to post signs warning to keep people away.

By law, people really have to stay back at least 50 feet. Their desire to help is a dead end road for the seal, as even the best intentions are illegal and will offer little help if the animal actually has a problem.

Hagestedt says the category for this one is the so cute it hurts departmentL

Tiffany Boothe and the baby seal at the cove in Seaside

It is believed that the pup washed up Sunday afternoon in Seaside. It was located in the southern end, known as "the cove". Tiffany and Jaimie determined it was a male, very recently born, with all its white furry coat still on. Tiffany Boothe took a GPS reading of exactly where it was, in case the animal moves later. She also measured the pup. Tiffany stressed it's not helpless or abandoned... that it just got tired and crawled up onto the beach to rest. Its mother was out there somewhere hunting and would be back. The baby seal pup was probably about two feet long say the experts, and those on hand couldn't deny that it looked more like a cuddly stuffed animal. They say it obviously came up with the high tide, and then crawled up from the high tide line to rest. Indeed, the little guy appeared very sleepy and spent considerable time napping while the group were hovering around it. It is a fact that in spite of educational efforts, some people have actually picked the seals up and brought them into their bathtubs back at their hotel rooms.

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Note to humans...we the "wild" animals in what is left of the "wild" like to be left alone. We did just fine for thousands of years, without "nosy" human involvement, and so long as you don't clear cut the last areas on Earth, hopefully we will continue to do so. While you might think it's cute to go nose to nose with us, we the animals say "please keep a nice distance". Ok, I'm done channeling for the animals now. :>)

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