Seal rescued after being trapped in fihing net

By Faye Mayern

A young seal found horrifically entangled in a 4kg mass of fishing debris which left her with a three-inch-deep "necklace" wound is recovering at a wildlife center.

Doughnut, a female grey seal, was rescued from the beaches of Horsey in Norfolk on September 20 with a horrifying laceration around her throat.

She was rescued by the Friends of Horsey Seals on September 20 before being transported to the RSPCA's East Winch Wildlife Centre.

The Friends team had been aware that Doughnut had become entangled in a mass of netting since the beginning of August but had never had a chance to get close enough to be able to rescue her.

The netting was acting as an "anchor" on the young seal's body.

Wildlife center manager Evangelos Achilleos said: "Doughnut had become severely entangled in a mass of netting, twine, fishing hooks and metal that had knotted together to become an anchor weighing her down in the water, cutting deeply into her flesh, draining her of energy, leaving her in unimaginable pain and preventing her from swimming or hunting properly.

"When this horrid mass was finally removed from her we were horrified to discover that it weighed around 4kg.

"Unsurprisingly, it left huge, deep lacerations around her whole neck.

"These 'necklace' injuries are becoming a sight we see all too often here at East Winch and it's devastating to see the impact that humankind is having on these beautiful creatures."

The RSPCA's wildlife experts and vet teams will be monitoring Doughnut closely as she's treated for her injuries.

Doughnut, thought to be around a year old, has a three-inch-deep wound which will need to recover.

Sally Butler, chair of the Friends of Horsey Seals, said: "It's very rare for us to attempt a rescue at this time of year with so many heavily pregnant seals around it wouldn't be right for us to disturb them and cause them stress.

"But we were doubtful as to whether Doughnut would survive until the end of the pupping season so we decided to attempt a rescue even though she wasn't close to the water's edge.

"It was a case of right time, right place and we managed to haul Doughnut out alongside a small group of juveniles, bulls and one weaned pup.

"We're so grateful to the members of the public who helped us carry the stretcher off the beach and to the East Winch team for their hard work in caring for her.

"Unfortunately we're aware of other entangled seals in the colony and we hope to rescue them soon."

East Winch has dealt with 104 seals with 'necklace' injuries - caused by netting, line or plastic rings caught around their necks - since 2008.

The year was when the team noticed an increase in the issue and started recording numbers of admissions.

Evangelos added: "We'll be keeping her comfortable and working to regain her strength.

"But the reality is that the coming days will be touch and go for Doughnut.

"Her wound is dreadful and this won't be a quick recovery but we will do everything to help her pull through.

"She'll need months of specialist treatment, care, rehabilitation and food before we can even think about the day we hope to see her return to the wild."