Seal put down after ferry trip in car boot

DON'T DO IT: DOC biodiversity manager Peter Simpson says it was "definitely not" sensible to take a seal in the back of a car across Cook Strait.

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People are being warned to leave fur seals alone, after one was ferried across Cook Strait and another taken into custody by Lower Hutt police.

Lower Hutt police intervened when a seal swam up the Hutt River and climbed its banks on August 13.

Senior Sergeant Tony Bernards said the seal had been nabbed near the river area looking "a bit under the weather". It was held in the cells until Conservation Department officials arrived and was later bailed to the coast near Eastbourne.

DOC staff were contacted the next day by Pet Vets in Silverstream after a member of the public brought a seal in from Picton, "apparently on the ferry". A vet nurse at the clinic said the young seal was skinny and emaciated, and its well-meaning captors thought it had been abandoned by its mother.

DOC biodiversity manager Peter Simpson said it was "definitely not" sensible to take a seal in the back of a car across Cook Strait.

"When you see a seal out on its own it's because its mother's kicked it out, told it to get a job."

The stress of being removed from its environment and being kept in a car boot during the journey meant the seal had to be put down.

"Most seals reported as injured or sick are just resting and should be left alone," Mr Simpson said.

It was not uncommon at this time of year for young pups to strike out on their own and people should not assume they were in trouble.

"This is the breeding and weaning season, so mum's kicked them out of home because she's got another one on the way. So they go off on a bit of an overseas experience."

Seals were known to turn up in drains, back yards and in the middle of the road.

"During storms Cook Strait is a bit like a washing machine and seals can become tired. The seals come ashore for a bit of rest and sleep," Mr Simpson said.

Seals are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act 1978 and disturbing one can be punished by up to six months' jail and fines of up to $250,000.

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nosk   #2   01:46 pm Aug 26 2009

Stephen - You cant blame DOC for some idiot putting a seal in a car-boot for the duration of a ferry trip ...... DOC have limited resources like everyone else ... they dont need idiots making work for them

Stephen Layton   #1   09:50 am Aug 26 2009

I happen to know that the vet in Lower Hutt desperately wanted to pass the seal pup to a Conservation Officer. DoC could only regurgitate useless instructions via whoever answers their telephone. They refused to collect the animal themselves. If Doc want better co operation from the public, their field staff should be more accessible.

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