First seal pups released into the wild this season

The first seal pups of this season that have been in the care of A Seal, a reception location for seals, were released into the wild on Friday at the beach in Ouddorp, Rijnmond reported. Mucky Pup was the first seal pup to be found this season. He was rescued in May close to Ouddorp, and was underfed with injuries to his head.

The pup’s weight has increased from eight kilograms to 35 kilograms in the past three months. Together with several other pups he was released into the sea on Friday.

“It is definitely emotional”, Steef van Velzen from A Seal told Rijnmond. “When we lifted him into the car, he came to sit against me for a while and then he looks at you with those big beads. They just talk to you”, Van Velzen said.

The pups eagerly crawled into the sea but were hesitant to swim far out. “They don’t have that much experience with the sea”, Van Velzen said. He predicted that the pups will need some time to get accustomed to their new home.

Now that the pups have been released into the wild there is space for new pups to be housed at A Seal.