Ill Sea Lion Pup Rescued From Parking Lot

A sick California sea lion, discovered beneath a car Thursday on the Point Mugu Navy base, was taken to an animal care center in San Pedro for treatment.

Navy personnel discovered the year-old pup sleeping in a parking lot on the west side of the base. County animal regulation officers took the animal to the shelter at the Camarillo Airport, where it spent the day in a dog run.

At 2 p.m., Dan Pearson, president of the Point Mugu Wildlife Center, picked up the pup and delivered it to the Fort MacArthur Marine Mammal Care Center in San Pedro.

“It was real sick and skinny. Its bones and spine were showing,” Pearson said.

The 19-pound pup, which should weigh about 50 pounds, may have been squashed by its mother, Pearson said.

Officials at the care center said the pup was dehydrated and malnourished. They started an IV about 5:30 p.m., and tried to feed it fish. The pup refused, but staff will try to get it to eat solid food again today.

County Animal Regulation Department director Kathy Jenks said the treatment offered by her staff depends on the animal’s symptoms.

“If we have a young one just laying there, the vet takes a look, and if it needs fluid he’ll get it started,” Jenks said. If the animal has been cut by a boat propeller, or wounded, the local staff will begin treatment before sending it on to the care center.

Some years, there are a dozen such rescues, other years as many as 30. Most of the animals come in on weekends--people at the beach see an animal and call authorities.

The first four months of the year have produced few rescues in Ventura County.

“El Nino does terrible things to the ocean. When that’s happening, we get a lot more,” Jenks said.

Jenks warned not to assume that a sea lion is beached because it is ill. Often, it is just doing what comes naturally.

“They’re born on land and they live a large part of their lives on land. They go in the water to play and hunt,” she said.

The best thing to do if you see a beached animal is to stay away.

“A lot of times, a mother will put her pup on the beach to keep it warm while she’s fishing. And if there are a lot of people around, she won’t come back up and get it,” Jenks said.