UK: Dogs visit seal sanctuary to cheer sea lions amid COVID-19 lockdown

Amid the unprecedented coronavirus lockdown, a group of dogs have been visiting a seal sanctuary in bid to keep them company. While taking to Facebook, the Cornish Seal Sanctuary said that they usually welcome over 10,000 people a year to their centre. However, due to the lockdown, they have been forced to close and therefore, the animals they take care have become isolated and lonely. 

In a bid to keep the seals engaged, the staff then decided to bring their dogs to work. While sharing a few images from the visit, a spokesperson from the sanctuary said that the animals definitely had fun and perked up. The staff said that the animals were ‘intrigued’ to see the dogs again and seemed to love the experience. 

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The caption of the post read, "With the Sanctuary having no guests walking around, our animals have definitely noticed the difference. The team have been working around the clock to provide lots of extra enrichment and fun for the animals to keep them healthy, happy and entertained”. 

It further read, “Our team decided to bring their dogs in to say hello to the seals and to remind them of what it is like when the Sanctuary is open. The animals were very intrigued to see dogs again on site and enjoyed interacting with them!”. 

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Sanctuary uses music to calm seals 

Furthermore, the sanctuary also added that the dog visit did not just help the lonely seals, the staff at the centre also had fun and have been using music to keep themselves entertained. The centre said that the team also have been playing music over the speaker system to keep the residents calm and happy. While referring to research confuted at the sanctuary back in 2017, the centre said that playing classical music helps decrease anxious behaviour in the sea lions. 

The caption read, “The team have also been playing music over the speaker system to help to keep the residents calm and happy. This follows research conducted at the Sanctuary by student Mati Skerrit, in 2017. She found that playing classical music to our California sea lions decreased anxious behaviours and increased time spent playing and swimming”. 

With lockdown, the sanctuary also said that they were surging to make ends meet. The centre also informed that they have now set up a fundraising page as well to help them pay the £23,000 it costs every month to keep the charity running. While calling it a ‘seal appeal’, the sanctuary wrote, “We are now entering our third month without guests, and need your support more than ever”. 

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