Orphaned sea otter rescued off of Pismo Beach

December 22, 2021

The baby sea otter

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

A baby sea otter was rescued off the coast of Pismo Beach and is now living in the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. [Long Beach Post]

The 14-week-old orphaned otter arrived at the Long Beach aquarium a few weeks ago. At the time, it weighed about 10 pounds. It is now eating well and weighs 16 pounds.

Aquarium staff feed the otter every one to three hours and set him up with a surrogate in order to learn skills for surviving in the wild. The otter is receiving care as part of Aquarium of the Pacific’s new Sea Otter Surrogacy program, a partnership with the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Staffers only have limited interactions with the orphaned otters in the surrogacy program, and they need to wear special suits that distort the human form. This gives the otters a better chance of surviving in the wild.

The baby otter that was rescued off of Pismo Beach will join the other sea otters in the main habitat at the aquarium on Dec. 28.


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