Sussex: Injured seal pups released into wild in Hastings

The pups, named Skittles and Hopscotch, were found underweight and injured along the Sussex coastline and treated at the RSPCA’s specialist wildlife centre at Mallydams Wood in Hastings.

Peter Smith, centre manager at RSPCA Mallydams Wood, said: "As with every seal release, watching Skittles and Hopscotch return to the water was a joy, especially after months of care from our dedicated team.

"Both seal pups required life-saving medical treatment to recover from the injuries to their flippers including regular salt baths and hand-feeding four times a day to start with, until they learned to feed themselves including learning to swim again and to catch fish on their own.

"They were also hand-fed four times a day to start by staff, until they learned to feed themselves."

The pups were rescued by the British Divers Marine Life Rescue and transferred to the RSPCA Mallydams Wildlife Centre.

They received round-the-clock care, including feeding, salt baths and help relearning to swim and hunt.

Staff described the moment they were returned to the sea as "emotional."

Mr Smith said: "There was a point during their rehabilitation that we weren’t sure if the pups would pull through, so their release was a particularly special moment for our team."

Skittles and Hopscotch were released on the Hastings seafront in April, watched by a team of four specialist RSPCA wildlife rehabilitators.

The RSPCA said this work would not be possible without funding from the People’s Postcode Lottery.

Laura Chow, head of charities at People’s Postcode Lottery, said: "It’s incredible to see these beautiful seals return to the wild where they belong, thanks to the tireless efforts of RSPCA’s dedicated team."

The pups were rescued by experts from the British Divers Marine Life Rescue before they were transported to RSPCA Mallydams Wildlife Centre. (Image: RSPCA) So far this year, players have raised £325,000 for the charity.

This support is vital as wild animal admissions to RSPCA centres have risen by 35 per cent.

Last year, the RSPCA Mallydams Centre in Hastings cared for more than twice as many seals as in 2022.

Across its four wildlife centres, the RSPCA takes in an average of 314 sick or injured seals each year at a cost of more than £365,000.

Mr Smith said: "Caring for sick and injured seals is incredibly complex and takes a huge amount of time and resources, as we will only intervene when absolutely necessary.

"It takes approximately 120 days (four months) between rescuing a seal who is sick and injured, and being able to release them back to the wild in a healthy state.

"We simply couldn’t do this vital and specialist work without support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery."

The cost of fish alone to feed each seal is around £4.50 per day, and the salt for each pen is about £7 per day.

Mr Smith also warned the public to be cautious around seals.

He said: "Seals are beautiful animals, and some of the largest wild animals we have in the UK.

"If you are visiting a beach, you may be lucky enough to spot seals in the sea, or on the beach, but getting too close can cause distress and might stop them from resting, force them back into the sea too soon, or even separate a pup from their mum.

"The kindest thing you can do is to quietly enjoy the view from at least 100 metres away so that the seal can have space to relax."