Underweight seal pups rescued along coast

A pair of seals would have struggled to survive in the wild if they had not been rescued, a charity said.

The British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said it received two reports of seals being found in Jersey on Saturday.

The first call involved a female pup which weighed 16kg (35.2lb) in St Catherine while the second was at L'Etacq where a male seal, weighing 15kg (33lb), had failed to get to the sea over the rocks.

Both seals, who were underweight and dehydrated, are being cared for at the New Era Vets while a plan is made for their future, BDMLR said.

The charity said to have a chance to survive alone, the seals would need to weigh at least 30kg (66.1lb).

"Neither would survive back out in the wild at the size they were," it said.

The female pup was also covered in small wounds and flies when she was found, the charity added.

BDMLR said St Catherine RNLI helped with the rescue the female pup and thanked members of the public who alerted them to the seals.

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