Gravy was rescued on 16th January 2026
|
Gravy, a 12+ weeks old male grey seal pup, was rescued on the 16th of January 2026 from a beach on the Lizard by Ben, Sanctuary´s Animal Care Specialist, and was accompanied by vet student Kate. They were dispatched to check on the pup. After monitoring the pup from a distance for a while, a decision was made by Ben to carry out a full assessment and found the seal was found very lethargic with mild pneumonia and several mouth wounds that needed treating.
The pup was uplifted and transported to the Cornish Seal Sanctuary where the animal care team could start his rehabilitation. Gravy spent a few days in the isolation area of the hospital.
Update - 23rd January 2025 : After lots of rest and treatment, Gravy is feeling much better now and on the road to recovery. Once his mouth wounds have fully healed and he has put on some weight, Gravy can graduate outside to make some friends. These photos below were taken on the 23rd of January 2026 in the main area of the hospital.
Steve Backshall, Helen Glover and their family have kindly sponsored and named this pup Gravy.
|
Update - 4th February 2026 : Gravy was moved down to the outside nursery pools for his next stage of rehabilitation. This means he is on the road to recovery and also has a deeper pool to swim in. These photos below were taken on the 4th of February 2026 in nursery pools.
Pups in the nursery pools will be learning how to behave in the wild, interacting with other seals and also competing for their fish, which are all vital skills they will need when they are released back out into the wild.
His flipper tag ID number SL377 (yellow).
|
|
Update - 12th February 2026 : These photos below of Gravy were taken on 12th of February 2026 in the nursery pool number 1.
|
Update - 1st April 2026 : Gravy is now in the rehabilitation pool with 2 other rescued seal pups, Doughnut and Yum Yum, these photos below were taken on 1st of April 2026.
The pups in the rehabilitation pool are now healed of any wounds, recovered from any illnesses and are now at the perfect weight to be ready to thrive in the wild.
|
Update : Gravy along with Fool and Sickle Doodle have now fully recovered and are at the perfect weight of 30+kg, ready to thrive back in the wild! They were released back into the wild on 28th of April 2026.
This time we had the privilege of being joined by 5 lovely VIPs, Helen Glover (British Professional Rower), Steve Backshall (Naturalist, Explorer, Writer and TV Presenter) and their three children, for this release.
Normally during these seal releases, the pups are out of the trailer as soon as the ramp is lowered and straight into the sea, but oh no, Gravy decided to play up, as hard as the Team tried with the boards to encourage him into the sea, the harder Gravy pushed back, but then Steve wandered over and looked at the pup, off Gravy shot, out to the sea leaving a tidal wave behind him.
|
|
