Aquarium provides advice for people spotting baby seals | Rhode Island News

WESTERLY, RI (AP) — It’s seal pup season, and the Mystic Aquarium’s Animal Rescue Program has some tips for people spotting animals along the shores of Rhode Island and Connecticut.

Puppies, after being nursed for three to four weeks after birth, begin to learn how to survive on their own, a crucial time in their transition to adulthood, the aquarium said in a statement.

Anyone who sees a baby seal alone on shore should stay at least 150 feet away and call the 24-hour animal rescue hotline at 860-572-5955 ext. 107. Rescue personnel will either send trained responders to monitor the animal’s health or retrieve a sick or injured animal requiring medical attention.

People should not touch, feed or attempt to help the puppy.

Mystic Aquarium’s animal rescue program fielded two calls for young seal pups along the shoreline this season. A pup spotted on Misquamicut State Beach in Westerly appeared healthy and finally swam away.

A second pup spotted this week on Blue Shutters Town Beach in Charlestown had a broken jaw and multiple puncture wounds on its head. Vets tried to save the seal, but it eventually died.

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