Baby Seal Reluctant to Leave Behind Companion During Rescue From Fishing Hook

A baby seal appeared reluctant to leave one of its injured fellows as a wildlife rescue tried to remove a fishing hook from the stricken animal at Pelican Point, Namibia, on March 27.

Conservationist Naude Dreyer posted a video on his Instagram page showing the fishing hook rescue. He wrote in the post that it was a “bit of sad/funny situation.”

The video shows Dreyer rushing to capture a baby seal whose mouth had been caught by a fishing hook. Another baby seal can be seen rushing up to the rescuer, whose offsider Antoine steps in to shoo the second aninal away.

“Even though they are small, their teeth are very sharp, and they are prone to biting,” Dreyer told Storyful. “Antoine had to keep pulling and ushering him away and only afterwards could help me extract the hook.”

The video goes on to show Antoine pulling the hook from the seal as Dreyer holds the animal.

“It’s for catching snoek,” Dreyer says in the video, observing the fishing hook. “Luckily, since the barb has been pushed flat, we can get it out without too much effort.”

He urged the fishermen to flatten the barbs to avoid hurting seals. Credit: Naude Dreyer via Storyful