Grey seal pups are commonly stranded in the UK, requiring careful rehabilitation to restore their welfare.
Grey seal pups stranded on beaches face acute welfare challenges from dehydration, starvation, hypothermia, and wound infection. Well-resourced rehabilitation centres have developed evidence-based protocols for seal pup care that achieve high survival and successful release rates. Public interference — even well-intentioned contact — causes significant distress and can cause pup abandonment by mothers in the early stages. Knowing when to help and when to call experts is itself a welfare intervention.