Hermione - Arrived 9th December 2001
	Hermione was originally rescued by Orkney Seal Rescue from Calf Of Flotta on the 14th of November. She was brought into the centre when she was about 2 weeks old because she was very skinny, weighing only about 11kg. This is actually below the normal birth-weight for grey seals pups (usually around 15 kg). It is thought that she had become separated from her mother during recent stormy weather. During her stay on Orkney, although being a very lively pup, and consuming large quantities of food, she was not putting on any weight.
Since arriving here at the sanctuary we have run a series of tests to find out what is stopping her gaining weight. Until we get the results we are treating Hermione with antibiotics and lots of TLC. UPDATE 2-3-2002
As soon as she arrived at the sanctuary Hermione was a handful. She was a very feisty and nosey little pup, and although being very underweight she could hold her own against staff here during feeding times. Luckily within a week we had got her to the stage of handfeeding, which meant no more wrestling with her at feeds (usually with staff losing). Within 2 weeks of her arrival we decided that she was ready to meet Hagrid and water! This wasn´t a big hit with her, she was fine with Hagrid, she soon showed him who was boss, however water was another matter. For weeks she would avoid going in the water as much as possible, and if she did venture in she wouldn´t put her head under the surface. Once she got over this fear she soon learnt to feed on whole fish herself, and she was moved into our outdoor pools on the 30th of January. We are now waiting for her weight to reach 40kg before we release her. UPDATE 27-5-2002
	Since moving outdoors Hermione has come on in leaps and bounds. After only a few days she had settled into outdoor life and was competing well with the adults at feeding time. She has also been a big hit with staff and visitors as she has learnt some of Lorne´s tricks; she likes to growl during feeds and loves to splash her flippers on the water, especially when she´s right next to whoever is doing the feed as it instantly gets her a fish to stop us getting soaked! Hermione is quite a lazy pup though and in between her energetic outbursts at feed times she likes nothing more than settling into position at the bottom of the chute and snoozing for a couple of hours. Hermione was very successful at getting hold of fish during the feeds, and this showed in her weight; she weighed 67 kg when she was released on the 30th of April. She was surprisingly timid at her release and was actually quite reluctant to come out of her transport box. After a bit of persuasion she ventured into the water and cooled her tummy in the water for a few minutes before gradually exploring further and further from the shore.
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