Grey seal colonies in the UK have grown substantially in recent decades, creating complex welfare and management challenges related to pup mortality, entanglement, and human-wildlife conflict.
Grey seal welfare at the colony level includes pup mortality from exposure and storm events, and at the individual level includes entanglement injuries that cause severe pain and progressive deterioration. Seals with net or rope entanglements around their necks suffer chronic constriction injuries, infection, and eventual death if not rescued and treated. Human disturbance at breeding colonies — despite legal protection — causes pup abandonment and cow panic, resulting in preventable deaths. Seal rescue organisations provide direct welfare interventions but operate under resource constraints. Reducing plastic and rope litter in the marine environment and avoiding disturbance of haul-out sites are practical individual contributions to seal welfare.