Saved seal recovering after infected eye removed

The seal pup was just under 8kg when he was recued

A seal pup rescued from a beach is recovering after complex surgery on a severe eye infection.

The pup, nicknamed Popeye, was just a few weeks old and malnourished when he was found on Crimdon beach near Hartlepool on 12 July.

A British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDLMR) team treated him at its North East Seal Triage Unit (Nest) before he began rehabilitation at the Tynemouth Seal Hospital, but his eye worsened and had to be removed.

The team said, after weeks of eating "lots of fish", the pup's weight had risen and he had more energy to "pester volunteers" visiting him and cleaning his pen back at Tynemouth.

Warning: this article shows graphic images of the seal's infected eye

He was just a few weeks old and weighed less than 8kg when he was rescued.

Richard Ilderton, lead volunteer at the seal hospital, said: "Sadly, despite the best efforts of the team, the ulcer caused the eye to rupture, meaning it would need an operation to remove it."

The underweight seal was rescued from Crimdon beach and after an operation his wound is healing

He went back to Nest and the operation was carried out by the vet team at Robson and Prescott.

Following weeks of care and medication, the patient was transferred back to the seal hospital on Monday.

"He is already giving the volunteer team the run-around as they try to clean his pen," Mr Ilderton said.

"He is eating incredibly well, now weighing over 23kg."

The seal's infected eye before the operation

The team now hope he will soon be released back into the wild.

Ashleigh Bell, displays supervisor at Tynemouth Aquarium, said seal populations in the North East were "under increasing pressure" from environmental and physical challenges.

She praised the efforts of the seal hospital volunteers and the BDLMR for rescuing and nursing the pup back to life.