NATIONAL SEAL SANCTUARY


The convalescent pool has had a new visitor this week. Sahara, our Hooded Seal, has moved to the convalescent pool, although as a species Hooded Seals are generally solitary creatures they do socialise with other seals during their breeding season, so it was thought that Sahara might enjoy the opportunity to interact with our resident grey seals. On the 10th September 2009 the Animal Care Team moved Sahara into nursery pool 1; this would allow him to interact with the resident grey seals whilst still retaining a physical barrier between the two. Within a couple of days the gate was opened and Sahara was free to meet the resident grey seals in the convalescent pool, minutes, then hours ticked by and Sahara stayed exactly where he was and refused to go into the convalescent pool. The team hoped feeding time would be the encouragement Sahara needed to join the other residents in the convalescent pool, but Sahara just sat in nursery pool 1 and waited for us to go to him with the fish, the team began to think that Sahara much preferred his own company. News with the other residents in this pool, it has now come to that time of the year breeding season for grey seals. Marlin is spending his days chasing Lizzie around the pool, and Lizzie being very grumpy with all the attention. Anneka has now recovered from her squint. Fatima and Sheba are both very hungry at the moment

with Fatima being the largest resident in this pool. Sheba is enjoying the feed balls and Atlanta enjoying the ice blocks. Another resident enjoying ice blocks was Snoopy until Marlin came along and scared her. Ray has been enjoying the sun shine and even made it in to the local paper.

Photo above: Sahara enjoying ice in nursery pool 1

Photo below: Ray enjoying the sunshine!


Luna and Sija are extremely hungry at the moment so the Animal Care Team have upped their feed and both are continuing to go through their moult. Training is going well and Sija is learning to get in the ring and push it along and target the yellow buoy in the pool. Luna has been learning to roll in to the pool.	Andy and Chaff are doing well with training and feeding well. We have introduced feed balls and Andy is doing really well at it, Chaff is useless and much prefers the ice blocks. Last week a visitor managed to drop an umbrella into the enclosure, Chaff put his training in to action by going into the pool and retrieving it but did manage to pick it up by the cloth end.	Flipper and Yulelog have been having little arguments due to the fact we have now come in to grey seal breeding so most days Flipper is in bed at 4pm and the team have to go into the cave and wake him up in the morning.


Starsky and Hutch, our otters, have had to be put on diets as they are both half a kilo over weight. To distract them from the fact they are getting less food, we have upped their enrichment, both are having bubble enrichment. They have also celebrated their 4th birthday and were give strawberry and jelly birthday cakes.	André has been chasing sea gulls around the enclosure. Both Noito and Diego are going through their moult and Noito has been behaving realy well, Diego on the other flipper not so good. We have changed their training a bit and have now started to get all the sea lions to target through the glass.

Goats: Priscilla and Monty (right) are doing well and enjoying the recent good weather.

Ponies: Bracken has been up to his old tricks and breaking out of the paddocks again this time he has both Tuppence and Muffin in tow.

Sheep: Bluebell now spends most mornings getting out of the paddocks and roaming around the Sanctuary eating the grass, but she knows that when the land train starts moving that we are open to visitors and goes back into the paddocks.

		National Seal Sanctuary
		Issue 21
		18th September 2009