It’s the seal deal in town

A makeshift seal rescue team assembled on Friday when a lonely and grumpy sub-Antarctic fur seal ventured down Dunsborough’s streets.

The baby seal was spotted by a Quindalup woman as it ducked for cover under her car at about 6.45pm on Friday night.

Dunsborough Busselton Wildlife Care Inc President Sasha Boundy said she originally thought it was a prank call when the lost seal was originally reported as it had journeyed quite a way from the beach.

“When I got to the scene there was a very angry seal barking and growling at everyone from under her car,” she said.

“I tried to get it into a pet carrier but he was a bit too big so after I called the police we thought of the ingenious idea of putting him into a green wheelie bin and transporting him back to the ocean.”

Mrs Boundy said the police were prompt in their response to her call for help and she sent onlookers home for their safety as the seal was charging and trying to bite people like a wild dog.

Constable Chae Biggins and Constable Georgia Payne assisted Mrs Boundy with the rescue for more than thirty minutes.

“It was probably the best call for help I’ve ever received, it was a great job,” Constable Payne said.

“We had to use a towel to convince it to get into the bin — it was pretty feisty — but once we got it back into the water it swam off into night safely.”

Mrs Boundy said seals often bask on the shores of Geographe Bay and Shelley Beach at this time of year and advised dog walkers to keep their dogs on a lead.

“Recently we rescued a seal which had a few puncture marks from a kelpie biting it on the beach,” she said.