Parks Canada is investigating after a hiker on Vancouver Island encountered a beached seal pup that is missing an eye, and decided to rescue the injured animal.
The hiker apparently came across the pup while on the West Coast Trail. Seeing the distressed pup apparently near death after being abandoned by its mother, the hiker took it to the nearby town of Port Renfrew, B.C., where she and the pup checked into a hotel room. That’s when the hiker contacted the Vancouver Aquarium.
The pup then made its way from Port Renfrew to the Marine Mammal Rescue Centre at the Vancouver Aquarium.
While the out-of-province hiker may have saved the pup's life, experts warn the rescue was illegal and should be discouraged.
"People should not try to pick these animals up. Often there is nothing wrong with the animal at all. They are waiting for mom to come back from foraging," Vancouver Aquarium head veterinarian Dr. Martin Haulena told CTV Vancouver.
"They (hikers) are always well-intentioned, always think there is something wrong, always trying to do the best for the animal, and just don't know all the information they need to know."
Both Haulena and Parks Canada spend a lot of time trying to discourage people from picking up animals.
"That seal pup does play a role within the natural world of the ecosystem and can act as an important food source for other species," Parks Canada’s Nathan Cardinal told CTV Vancouver.
Hikers are warned about the dangers of even touching a beached seal because a mother may then abandon the pup sensing the human interaction.
Staff at the rescue centre don't turn away animals in distress, but are cooperating with the Parks Canada investigation.
The female harbour seal pup was likely born in June or July. She is under 24-hour care at the Marine Mammal Rescue Recovery Centre and veterinarians say it's too early to know if it will survive.
