A Sligo woman is looking after an abandoned seal pup.
Four weeks ago, an unexpected visitor came to stay with Noelle Middleton near Strandhill in County Sligo. A pup seal who had been abandoned by its mother.
One of the challenges in providing care is feeding as the pup can not suck the milk it needs to survive.
Mother seals feed their young in a squirting action.
Noelle Middelton has devised her own method of semi-forced feeding. The pup plays in a saltwater pool beside her home and though it goes swimming in the sea returns to Noelle every evening. With the close bond that has been established Noelle is now trying to teach the pup to fish so it can survive independently.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 29 July 1982. The reporter is Tommie Gorman.
