We’ve been so busy caring for our 21 harbor seal pups and weanlings (+2 grey seals) that we’re just now catching our breath to send a big update! The pups started arriving early in May with the arrival of Wiggle who was assessed and collected by the College of the Atlantic/Allied Whale. Here we are a solid 2 months later and the pups (now called weanlings) are still coming in from surrounding beaches. Here’s an update on a few notable pups.
Wiggle and Alfabeto getting cozy
Wiggle - The original 2012 pup. Wiggle’s name originated from the naming contest hosted by the Maine Mall. Just a few days old at arrival, Wiggle has been the star of many “firsts” this year : First to arrive at MARC, first to eat fish on her own, and hopefully, first to be scheduled for release. After an early battle with a urinary tract infection and umbilical infection, Wiggle has been in good health and gaining weight for several weeks. She is very sweet and enjoys hanging around in the pool.
Wiggle eating her herring breakfast
Alfabeto- This pup arrived May 6 after she was found hanging out in South Thomaston with no mother in sight. She been doing really well, eating GREAT, and holds the title as the largest pup at MARC to date: 21.8 kg (48 lbs). Can you believe she was only 16 lbs just 8 weeks ago??
Alfabeto lounging in a kiddie pool at MARC
Gnocchi- The first male pup to arrive at MARC this year (on May 12) and hailing from Westport Island, Maine. Though he hasn’t had the easiest time learning to eat fish, we are proud to say that over the last few days, he has started to eat fish in a very shallow pool. This is a HUGE milestone for any pup onsite and he should be feeding in the deep pools very soon.
Gnocchi resting between meals
Ditalini- Remember the peanut that came to us on May 19 from Matinic Island? This pup barely made a dent on the scale at an astonishing 5.4 kg (12 lbs.). Though we were very nervous that he might have some battles to deal with at such a small size… he has been amazingly strong and impressive…and was even one of the first animals to wean onto fish. Over the past few weeks, he has put on about 23 lbs and is nearly unrecognizable!
No wonder he's grown... Ditalini is always begging for food.
Manicotti- Arrived on May 20 from Port Clyde. He’s been doing really well and coasts under the radar most days at this point, but early in his rehabilitation at MARC, he did have some pretty extensive respiratory issues that kept him in fits of coughing and sneezing for most of the days. Now, he’s in the clear, gaining weight and eating a healthy diet of fish.
Manicotti resting poolside
Spaghetti- This little lady joined us on May 1 this year, along with her pal Meatball (see below). She’s currently dealing with a few infections, but has a feisty attitude and always entertains the volunteers…. Most notably always seen in some sort of wet noodle posture, suckling on her own hip… quite fitting when you’re named Spaghetti.
Spaghetti. Doing what she does.
Meatball- This guy from Georgetown, Maine was named because of his striking dark coat and chunky size… closely resembling a hefty meatball. He had been doing fairly well until about a week ago when extreme facial swelling and lethargy started taking over. Over the course of the week, he has been closely monitored, supplemented with fluids and antibiotics. He’s not quite in the clear yet, and oftentimes, like with Meatball, it can be extremely difficult to determine the cause of a health decline. We have our fingers crossed that he is over the worst of things, but only time will tell.
Meatball snoozing in the pool
We’ll have more animal updates this week… as we continue to make progress on their cases. Two more animals arrived at MARC in the hour we were writing this blog…so stay tuned for more updates on all of the cases!
