We are over the moon to be able to report that Smudge is eating again! He went off his food about three weeks ago after he fell ill and started producing a lot of phlegm from his mouth. Gradually he went off his food and stopped eating for almost two whole weeks. He would chomp on a fish, but never swallow anything. It reminded us of when he first arrived and refused to swallow. We were extremely concerned as seals get their fluid intake from the fish they eat, so there is a risk of dehydration. We were feeding him herring as we thought we had run out of mackerel, but then we found some, threw it into his pool and were delighted when he livened up and ate some. Our euphoria was short-lived when he stopped eating the mackerel as well. After vet visits and phone consultations we came to the conclusion that maybe the problem was in his throat, so we chopped up the fish and took the bones out. And lo and behold, he started wolfing down the pieces of mackerel. We're still cutting the fish up, but now we're leaving the bones in too. So Smudge seems to be on the mend. He's not 100 per cent yet, but hopefully he is now heading in the right direction. Good ol' Smudge, we do love you! #selkie #smudge #greyseal #shetland

The other day we had a surprise visit from Duncan Swainston and his daughter Isla who found Smudge the seal on the West Voe beach down in Sumburgh. They brought some mackerel to help Smudge get back into the swing of eating again after being off his food. It just so happened their visit was 18 months to the day after they found him…and it also happened to be Duncan’s birthday. What a coincidence! But he wouldn’t tell us how old he was… By the way, that’s Isla’s foot on the bottom right. She managed to avoid being in the photo somehow? And you can just see Smudge in the water. #selkie #smudge

Release time for Mani! Rescued as a cub in Orkney last August, he was brought north to the sanctuary on the Northlink ferry in September where he has grown from strength to strength, starting out with us on fish soup and ending up with a nightly feed of four or five haddock or whiting, tearing them to shreds with his powerful teeth and jaws. We could have released him earlier, but March is the worst month for food so we waited until mid April. What a joy it was to see him slink down to the sea from his old box after we had driven him several miles to the release site. Unusually he headed straight out into quite a turbulent sea rather than hugging the coast, as so many otters do when they first re-encounter the wild after growing up in captivity. Mani is clearly a survivor and he'll need all his wits about him to make it in his highly territorial world - an Orkney draatsie competing with the locals. We wish him well. Go Mani go! #draatsie #otter #shetland #wildlife

Mani the otter cub who arrived last autumn from Orkney is about to head out to the wild once the weather has calmed down. He’s more than ready to go, but March is the toughest month for wildlife at the end of a long winter with food supplies at their lowest. So now we’re just waiting for this wind to ease and spring to finally arrive…and then he can go! #draatsie

Last Sunday we received a call about this adult male otter who was curled up outside a house in Scalloway. The next morning he had disappeared but two days ago he was discovered in a back garden in Trondra eating frogs from a pond. He had clearly managed to swim across to the island, but something was clearly wrong as he seemed to be dragging his back legs. Fortunately today, with the help of wildlife vet nurse Lisa Trueman, we managed to catch him and take him to Scalloway Vets where an X Ray revealed multiple fractures. He was severely undernourished and clearly in extreme pain and as there was no way to repair the damage the only option was to put an end to his suffering. It transpires that this otter was struck by a car about 10 days ago and seeing the injuries he had, it is extraordinary that he managed to survive for so long, even managing to swim across a considerable stretch of sea. Otters are the most incredible creatures and we are so lucky to have the abundant population we do here in Shetland. It’s just so sad how often they get hit by cars. #draatsie #rip

Last Sunday we received a call about this adult male otter who was curled up outside a house in Scalloway. The next morning he had disappeared but two days ago he was discovered in a back garden in Trondra eating frogs from a pond. He had clearly managed to swim across to the island, but something was clearly wrong as he seemed to be dragging his back legs. Fortunately today, with the help of wildlife vet nurse Lisa Trueman, we managed to catch him and take him to Scalloway Vets where an X Ray revealed multiple fractures. He was severely undernourished and clearly in extreme pain and as there was no way to repair the damage the only option was to put an end to his suffering. It transpires that this otter was struck by a car about 10 days ago and seeing the injuries he had, it is extraordinary that he managed to survive for so long, even managing to swim across a considerable stretch of sea. Otters are the most incredible creatures and we are so lucky to have the abundant population we do here in Shetland. It’s just so sad how often they get hit by cars. #draatsie #rip

So the grey seal season has finally come to an end after four and a half months with the release of young Ariel, the adventurous pup who was found 300 yards inland after somehow managing to climb up a small cliff in Cunningsburgh during a howling easterly gale in January. A smart cookie if ever there was one, she took no time to moult her fur, learn the ropes of eating fish independently and even demonstrated her climbing skills once again when she managed to haul herself out of an empty pool all by herself. We're still scratching our heads as to how she managed it. When it came to releasing her she showed no hesitation, though she struggled a little with the swell, hugging the shoreline until she built up the confidence to head out to sea and into the wild life she was always destined for. Unlike most of our rescued seals, she even developed a friendly relationship with Smudge, who now has the pool all to himself again. #selkie #¢sealpup #greyseal #shetland #wildlife

Dodie arrived at the sanctuary just one month ago. He was at death's door when he was found on the beach at Grutness by Sumburgh Airport. We weren't sure whether he would survive those first few days, so shallow and painful was his breathing. But these grey seals can be incredibly resilient when they want to be, and Dodie definitely wanted to be. It took him just over a week to recover from what we assume was a major lungworm infestation, though we only ever actually saw two or three of the little blighters. From that point, there was no turning back. As soon he was outside in the pools he started hoovering up the fish and piling on the pounds, and when we put him in the big pool with Smudge they made friends straight away. We had no hesitation about releasing him as soon as he reached a good weight. He hit the beach running, or the seal equivalent, and we barely had time to get a camera out before he made it into the water, surfaced once and promptly disappeared into the wild ocean for good where a full life awaits. Go Dodie go! #selkie #sealpup #greyseal #shetland #wildlife

The big day for Gossi and Charlie arrived at the weekend despite the rough weather. Both seals were more than ready to go, with Charlie weighing over 35 and Gossi over 40 kilos, enough to keep them going while they learn the ropes of finding their own meals in the wild, wild sea. Gossi had been found in Burra in late November less than a day old after being abandoned by his mum, while Charlie was rescued just one month ago after he was discovered in a terrible state of health on Whalsay. Charlie's recovery has been especially remarkable, once again demonstrating how strong these grey seals can be. We released them together on a beach in the lee of the southerly wind where they found enormous enjoyment playing in the bladderwrack, chasing each other through the seaweed before making their way further out to sea and by this morning they had disappeared. A good life awaits them out there in the wild. #selkie #sealpups #greyseals #shetland #wildlife

Pool party! Gossi having a great time with a life belt. This girl's definitely ready for the wild! #selkie #sealpup #greyseal #shetland #wildlife