06/08/2026
Very sad to learn of this Seal pup at a Warrnambool beach last night. The members of public did a fantastic job of trying to get the pup help, including calling HWS.
Unfortunately the pup could not be helped at the time, and I'm hoping this post will help to clarify some things, even if it doesn't provide any realistic solutions.
~Wildlife Shelters~ operate under strict codes of practice and permit conditions (overseen by DEECA - Department of Environment). One of these conditions is that we can not rescue Marine Wildlife, in particular Marine Mammals such as Seals, Dolphins, Whales, and also Sea Turtles. Instead, we must direct calls for sick or injured Marine Wildlife to a specialised response team called the ~Marine Response Unit~, which is operated by Zoos Victoria. Breaching this permit condition could see Wildlife Shelters lose their Shelter operating permit.
Local Council (such as Rangers) and Veterinary Teams are also not allowed to intervene with Marine Wildlife and must call the MRU too.
Unfortunately, the Marine Response Unit is not a local team, and they also only operate within certain hours, they are not on call 24/7.
HN51 BIRD FLU has also arrived and there is a real risk that the Seal pup carried this virus. Therefore the ~Emergency Animal Disease Hotline~ (EAD) were an avenue to call/be notified. The EAD is managed by Agriculture Victoria, a subgroup of DEECA - Department of Environment. Again, this team likely only has staff that work within certain hours, but also may not have staff that are local to the area.
Bird Flu is a real and emerging threat, and protocols are in place to help minimize the spread but also to keep people safe. As someone who almost died from the Flu two years ago, I respect the right of volunteer Wildlife Carers and rescuers to say No to attending these cases, and to follow the conditions that we have been given (call the MRU and call the EAD Hotline) to get these animals help.
Unfortunately these systems do have their flaws, resulting in delayed help for the animals. Testing for suspected Bird Flu cases is being undertaken, to my knowledge, at Geelong, so there is also a lot of travel and delay just to undertake the testing of these animals.
In a nutshell, this is why members of the public are seeing a delay in sick animals on our beaches getting help. They are being reported but are often seen still sitting/lying there hours later.
It is my opinion that we need a Emergency Disease Response triage and quarantine area set up locally at Portland, to expediate help and testing for these animals. I don't know what laboratory equipment is required however, so I don't know how logistically viable that idea is. Staff should also be made available (on-call) for after hours cases, especially in this time when there will be an increase in calls for help.
Please remember that wildlife carers aren't saying no to helping just because we don't want to. Sometimes there are more things at play that prevent us from assisting. We are all out here doing the best we can.
Thank you to the kind members of public who tried so hard to get this little pup help last night ♡♡
EDIT: guys and gals, this was never about finger pointing or blaming anyone; I was simply trying to fill in the public knowledge gap of why rescuers can't always help, or why help is often delayed, especially for Marine animals. There are flaws in the system yes, but it is not the fault of rescuers, nor is it fault of the on-ground staff of the MRU or EAD or Ag Vic teams... we are all doing our best within the scope of our abilities, regulations and laws. Protocols exist for a reason: it's not just 'red-tape bu****it' and no, nobody is going to throw away their license, job, livelihood or potentially their life to "break the rules". The blame game needs to stop and if you want to see effective changes, then you need to lobby the right people, not just throw around hurtful words on social media.
BREAKING - CONCERNS SURROUND ILL SEAL PUP AT WARRNAMBOOL FORESHORE
