Fur Seal Pup Rescues On The Rise Along The Coast

SAUSALITO (CBS SF) -- Warm water conditions off the coast have resulted in a record number of northern fur seal pups needing on-land rescues, including
one that was previously rescued and turned up at a Hayward business earlier this week, Marine Mammal Center officials said Thursday.

Center officials said trained rescuers were dispatched around 6:30 a.m. on reports of a baby seal hiding in some bushes near Glazier Ironworks at 650 Sandoval Way.

Glazier workers said they found the pup around 5:50 a.m. in the street making his way over to the business and that they contacted animal control immediately making sure to monitor the pup to make sure he didn't wander off.

Colton Beebe, a worker for the company, said the pup stayed hidden behind a bushy area of the center for about two hours before becoming a little more active and "making some gnarly noises."

"The poor thing looked pretty tired and really hungry. We went to get him a delicious looking trout, but right as we were about to give it to him, the center told us not to feed him." Beebe said. "It was kind of a bummer, he would have had a smorgasbord."

Once on scene, center officials discovered the pup already had an ID tag from a previous rescue on Nov. 7 near Moss Landing Harbor in Monterey County.

Marine Mammal Center officials said the pup, nicknamed "Pipester" by volunteers, will be examined at the center and will likely reside there until he has gained enough weight to be released back into open water.

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