On Memorial Day, two San Francisco police officers helped rescue a stranded sea lion pup.
The call about a sea lion pup wandering along the Great Highway, a short distance from Balboa Street, came in early last Monday to the Richmond District station. An earlier report said that the pup seemed disoriented.
At 6:30 A.M., police officers Annie Burrows and Tracy Turner arrived on the Ocean Beach promenade, they found the sea lion seemed to be exhausted and cold. It also appeared that the animal wanted people to be around it.
When the Marine Mammal Center said their rescue van wasn't available immediately, they asked the police officers to kindly stay with the sea lion pup until the center's rescue workers arrive.
And that's what the two San Francisco police officers did on the morning of Memorial Day. They "babysat" the stranded sea lion pup for approximately three and half hours.
As requested by the Center's rescue workers, the police officers named the pup "George C. Bison" after the station's alphanumeric identifier for units in the field and their softball team.
The center's staff said the animal is about 11 months old. Apart from being lost, the sea lion pup was dehydrated and malnourished. Marine Mammal Center's spokesman Giancarlo Rulli said the pup was roughly 27 pounds.
George C. Bison is currently recuperating at the Marine Mammal Center. In the following week, the veterinarians will monitor him closely as he continues to feed through a tube.
Officer Turner has spent almost 20 years in law enforcement, with five years spent at the San Francisco Police Department. Turner has been with the Richmond District police station for one and half years.
"I don't think we've ever been called to a sea lion on the Great Highway before," shared Turner.
In the blog, the district shared a helpful, animal emergency handy pocket card [PDF] that people can print out and keep on their wallets. The card provides useful tips and information on what to do if you find an abandoned or ill mammal. People can also call the Marine Mammal Center's 24-hour hotline at 415-289-SEAL (7325).
