Each year, during the months of March-May, our Marine Mammal Rescue team at CWC receives a high volume of calls regarding stranded Northern Elephant Seal pups on the beaches in Malibu. Northern Elephant Seal pups are born in late December through early February and have an abrupt weaning period of just over four weeks. They will then make their journey into the ocean for the first time, primarily relying on instinct. Seal pups may begin to have difficulty in the ocean for a variety of reasons, including starvation, trauma, parasites, or human interaction, and may begin to haul out and end up in rehabilitative care. Each pup that comes in for rehabilitation receives a second chance at life, which was the case for patient #25-097.

On March 12, our team responded to a report of a stranded Northern Elephant Seal pup on El Sol Beach in Malibu. This patient was nicknamed “Orange,” for the non-toxic grease marker applied as identification. During her intake examination, staff observed that this patient was severely emaciated, dehydrated, and had a cloudy right eye that appeared to have a sunken appearance. After weaning from their mothers, pups typically weigh around 300lbs. Meaning that Orange, who only weighed 59lbs, had lost a significant amount of weight, falling just below birth weight (60-80lbs). Elephant seal pups that come into care at her weight range are considered extremely critical patients, as they do not have the proper layer of blubber to maintain their nutrition, insulation, or buoyancy to survive in the wild. Orange was promptly started on nutritional supplements to assist in weight gain, subcutaneous fluids to aid in hydrational therapy, as well as pain medication and antibiotics to combat any infection that may have been caused by her damaged eye.