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| Species: |
California Sea lion |
| Rescue Date: |
November 16, 2003 |
| Rescue Location: |
Dana Point Harbor, CA |
| Rescue Weight: |
60 pounds |
| Rescue Length: |
49 inches |
| Approx. Rescue Age: |
1 year |
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A special thanks to the Dana Point
Harbor Patrol, we were able to quickly access Cooper by water with the help
of their patrol boat. The Dana Point Harbor Patrol is often a help to us for rescues
in the harbor. They have helped us to reach injured animals on buoys, docks, swim steps of boats
and in Cooper's case to the end of a rocky jetty.
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Cooper
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Cooper was found at the end of the Dana Point Harbor jetty with fishing line caught around his neck. Fishing line can be extremely dangerous to
marine mammals. In Cooper's case, the line was caught around his neck and shoulder areas.
When the animal attempts to free themself from the line, they can often make the problem worse by
causing the line to tighten around them. Left too long, the line can cut through flesh and into
delicate tissue in their neck region and can soon become a life threatening problem.
We brought Cooper back to our center and removed the line from his neck. We
examined the wounds for severity and started Cooper on antibiotics to fight infections and a bi-daily wound
cleaning regimen.
Cooper's wounds are healing nicely now and he has put on weight since his rescue and is now
just under 100 pounds. He will have scars from his encounter with the fishing line,
but is showing a positive recovery and will be released to the ocean in a few
more weeks. If you visit the center, you will find Cooper in the pool in the
afternoon with his new buddies, Audi and Little Turkey. Click here for directions to the
center.
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