A seal unexpectedly appeared in a family’s home for a few hours, even causing the household cat to experience “trauma,” before being returned to the sea.
The family of Phil Ross expressed their surprise upon finding a baby seal in their house, located 150 meters from the shore. Phil Ross, a marine biologist, lamented that he was the only family member not home at the time to witness this rare sighting.
He shared that his wife, Jenn, left for the gym at 6 AM on August 17. She returned home at 7 AM to discover “a cute little seal.”
Jenn then woke their two children, Noah and Ari, upstairs to see the “new family member.”
“They were thrilled but completely unaware that not many kids their age have a seal visiting their home,” she said.
The seal was later captured by conservation officers to be returned to the sea. (Photo: Guardian).
According to Mr. Ross, the seal had crawled through the cat door to get inside. He believes the seal had “encountered” their cat, Coco. Coco subsequently refused to come downstairs due to “trauma,” he said.
The seal sat on the couch in the living room for a while before Jenn took it out to the garden. Conservation officers from the New Zealand Department of Conservation arrived at 10 AM that same day to return the seal to the sea.
Mr. Ross mentioned that the seal was very friendly upon entering the house and did not damage any furniture. He noted that it is common for baby seals to wander in the area at this time, as they are weaning and becoming independent.
Despite their cute appearance, seals can move quickly and injure others if they feel threatened. They can also carry infectious pathogens.
