Ballydowane Bagheera

Just before Christmas I came across a seal pup on Ballydowane.  He was at the far end of the beach, the dogs were sniffing him and I thought at first he was dead.  But he was very much alive, silver-furred and sleepy.  I had the number for the Seal Rescue in my phone and even more amazingly, I had my phone with me so I phoned them.  They said they needed photos so I took some, went home, emailed them off and put some rollers in my hair.  The Seal Rescue phoned me back and said he needing rescuing and that a man called Andrew Quinn from Waterford Animal Welfare would be there and could I show him where the beach and pup was.  So I took the rollers out of my hair and drove happily back out to Ballydowane, where the light was fading and just as it got properly dark, the stretchered seal pup was carried off the beach and into the rescue van.

The Rescue Centre phoned me the next day to tell me he had arrived and that he would be ok.  They called him Bagheera after the panther in Jungle Book which I thought was a very good name for a sleek and feisty seal pup.  Later, in the pupdate, I learned more and now he is safe and thriving, along with many other rescued pups, getting fat enough to take his chances again in the Celtic Sea.

A seal pup is just about the best thing I have ever found while beachcombing but I hope it doesn't happen again.