Many of you may remember Tiny Dancer, our sea lion pup we befriended on June 19th at El Porto (north end of Manhattan Beach). Well, TD was clearly not feeling well and was way too thin for his age. The lifeguards told us it was likely that his mother may have also been ill and put the pup up on the beach to try and rustle some food up. But the mother never seemed to return. (Sad part of the story.)
For whatever reason, TD really seemed to respond to my wife (probably the dancing), so the lifeguard asked her to keep talking to him and entertaining him until animal rescue came to pick him up. Finally, just as we were getting out of the water, animal rescue picked up our Tiny Dancer.
Well, I am happy to report that I tracked TD down and he appears to be doing well. (Happy part of the story.) The authorities took TD to the Marine Mammal Care Center in San Pedro where the vet tended to him and may have course-corrected his ailment. Furthermore, the center indicated that it was likely that TD would be returned to the wild ocean after a little more rehab. Because of that, the center does not name the rescued animals and minimizes human contact to aid in re-introduction success.
If you wish to help out Tiny Dancer, all other rescued marine mammals and the Marine Mammal Care Center you can volunteer, become a sponsor or donate to the rescued mammal cause (tax decuctable) via their website.
Stay strong, Tiny Dancer.