Seals Nala and Frances released back to the sea

Seal Nala was found in Ostend in February with bite wounds from a dog. The animal weighed only 14.8 kilograms and has since strengthened to 39 kilograms. It wasn’t the first time seals have suffered bite marks after interacting with beach walkers’ dogs. “We went through a tough period when we noticed that seals who wanted to rest on the beach were bitten by a dog,” says Steve Vermote of Sea Life Blankenberge.

After an information campaign by Sea Life, the message appears to have reached walkers with dogs. “We noticed that people learned the danger to seals, dogs, but also to themselves. Seals look cute, but they can be dangerous.”

Seal Frances washed up on the beach of Knokke-Heist in early February. The animal was very weak, had a high fever and weighed only 14 kilograms. Both seals had recovered enough to be released back to the sea. This happened on Monday in the presence of mayor Bart Tommelein (Open VLD) and minister of the North Sea Vincent Van Quickenborne (Open VLD). There are currently three seals residing at Sea Life’s seal sanctuary.