Subject: Seal Alert-SA Jammed Packed 2007 and Request for a Pledge
Date: September 30, 2007
Dear All Cape Fur
Seal Supporters,
Seven has always been my lucky
number, and 2007 has proved no exception. I have got to tell you,
that although we might be just a handful of people who truly care
about Cape fur seals we are dynamite!
Just look back on what we have
accomplished for the seals. We built a seal centre from nothing,
equipped it and successfully rehabbed the first group of babies
ever. We identified the sources of majority seal entanglement,
reported it and developed an alternative that could still hang fish
but not entangle seals. We firmly ensured through lengthy reports
that the EU acknowledges and deals with the Namibian seal cull. We
got two countries, Germany and Netherlands (Namibia's largest
tourism market) to specifically ban Cape fur seal imports. We
rescued and disentangled seals almost daily. We had so much media
reporting on the culling in Namibia, that not only was the Prime
Minister of Namibia forced to talk to us, where we make him watch
his country's sealers club baby seals, through this pressure
set up another meeting in Namibia where stakeholders in all
Namibia's major industries attended to hear not the usual
propaganda, but the true facts. Whilst we secretly did an aerial
survey proving sealers were wiping out, even the largest seal
colonies. As far as we know this forced them to stop sealing after
just one month, as there were simply no more seals to kill, even
trying other seal colonies, which failed.
Sadly for Seashepherd, they have
decided to withdraw funding for Seal Rescue, preferring to protect
humans instead of seals. Moving on, we have exposed MCM's practice
of removing so-called problem animals, as well as publicly exposing
Namibia's illegal seal-trophy hunting policies permitted by the
Minister of Tourism, and most recently the export of live seal pups
by this same Minister. Our Boycott Namibia website is really
upsetting Namibian's, which is great. The EU Written Declaration,
which now includes Cape fur seals, has moved to the next stage,
where EU Commissioners have tasked European Food Safety Authority
for a scientific review on the killing methods. All the major
international ngo's were informed and invited, and as usual, Seal
Alert-SA was kept in the dark. No matter, we have forced our way
in, have submitted three reports, and I can tell you that after
having seen the draft of this review, it is very, very positive,
and in all likelihood Seal Products will be banned in the EU by
year end. As Namibia exports all its skins, it will have to stop
sealing, and we will soon be rubbing their nose internationally on
their horrific slaughter of these endangered baby seals.
Although invited to the EFSA review in
Italy on October 4th, unfortunately lack of funds prevents
this.
A program is currently airing on
German and US television called Wildlife Nannies, and Seal Alert-SA
is the "Nanny of the Month", this week I have been bombarded by
filmmakers to film programs on the seals. Bart has just completed
one for 50/50 SABC, and this next week alone two other local
wildlife programs are coming to film, plus a French film crew, and
another from Korea. This year we have generated over 300
international newspaper articles, and one live interview on
BBC.
On this subject, yesterday the Korean film
crew wanted to film the seal island off Hout Bay and my work, I
warned them conditions were very rough, but they insisted. They
hired a larger boat to film >from and with me on the jet-ski
alongside we head off. Big seas were pounding the small seal
colony, and as they kept urging the skipper to get them closer,
each one in totally amusement kept running to the side of the boat
and vomiting over the side. Laughing my head off, I kept shouting,
film them not me. Although they were all sea-sick, they just loved
the conditions and the seals, and even when I tossed one film crew
with camera, into one particularly large on-coming wave, off
the back of the jetski, they loved it even more. It was a great day
filming.
I have not spoken about the babies much,
as it is confusing. The babies kept improving, then dipping. Then I
rescued a very weak yearling, and our one baby Alpha, bonded deeply
with this new seal. When the new seal was ready to return to the
wild, Alpha became very upset, refused eating (still on tube) and
started swimming in repetitive circles in our pool. The problems
experienced with group pup rehab, is that the bond, continually
gets diluted and you basically end up working with wild, wild pups,
with no bond. We then rescued another baby, a female from the wild.
So we had, two females and two males. I have previously continued
rehab in the wild after 6 months of in-house care, so at nine
months, I decided to attempt to rehab all four on the raft. They
were terrified, and I was forced to hold them in a holding cage
over-night so that they could acclimatize to their new
surroundings.
The next morning all hell broke loose. As each
one was released, he or she went their separate ways, seeing me as
a threat and would not respond or come close. Alpha with the new
rescued baby from the wild, immediately headed out the harbor,
individually, and have not been seen since. No doubt the new pup
will survive, as he is from the wild. Alpha has a slime chance, but
learnt alot from the yearling he bonded with, and so might survive
on his own. Regardless, it was his choice to leave and he really
wanted to go into the wild. I was left with JT the female pup and
Omega my most bonded pup. Neither would allow me to approach. JT
left the raft, but was seen swimming nervously around the harbour.
Omega was terrified, totally confused and would clearly not
survive. I re-captured him, and took him back to the centre where
he is much happier. JT kept swimming around the harbour, and
eventually in late afternoon and pouring rain, she found the raft,
but the cold and longest swim of her life, meant she become totally
confused and very weak, she was unable to stand. She was clearly
dying from the stress. I swam out and re-captured her too, at the
centre, she was very weak and appeared to have brain damage, being
unable to walk or stand. Two days of intensive nursing, brought her
back to normal again, and so we are now one happy family of two
babies, Omega the male, and JT the female.
Mumkin comes and goes for days away, but there
are signs that he is slowly weaning himself into the wild, after 22
months of rehab. My greatest problem lies in how to rehab JT and
Omega back to the wild, and then of course, next pupping season is
just around the corner. The only way I can see, is to completely
open the 4-walled centre to the sea, which means construction of a
40 metre by 2m high wall, two ramps from centre onto another pier
outside and then one ramp into the sea. If I could accomplish this,
then slowly I could get JT and Omega to follow me out the
centre through a roller shutter door down onto the pier and
sea. This way, it will prevent what previously happened and slowly
return them to the wild and them learning to self-survive.
Unfortunately, after Seasepherd withdrew
funding, funding has dried-up even further, and I am just too
busy to try and fund-raise locally. An estimated R100 - 150 000 or
USD $20 000 is needed to complete the building work. Without these
funds, I do not think I can firstly continue my existing rehab, but
more importantly, I cannot rescue or accept new babies which will
start washing off their islands in the next 6 - 8 weeks, as this
will just compound the problem. It is a real nightmare.
What is the solution? I personally feel
that individual supporters who in the past made things possible,
will not be the solution now, instead I feel its time Seal
Alert-SA, becomes a man. What I truly believe is the answer, is not
big once donations from a very few supporters (the pattern in the
past), but instead a combined effort, where we each contribute a
set amount monthly, every month of say $25. Supporters could do a
monthly debit or stop order with their bank, or they could post
me monthly $25 cheques or better still send post-dated monthly
$25 cheques. It is unknown how many Cape fur seal supporters there
are out there, because I do not control the websites, but I
suspect it is less than 50 worldwide. Although over 10 000 have
signed our various petitions with their contact emails.
My wife and I simply cannot continue funding 90%
of our own work with the seals, and still dedicate 100% of my time
to helping the seals. We need combined monthly regular
support.
Imagine for a moment, considering our past
achievements what we could do, if we numbered 500 instead of 50. I
therefore am asking each one of us, to pledge to contribute $25 a
month, monthly to Seal Alert-SA so that it can continue doing what
it has done for the seals. I enclose my banking details and postal
address. As I seldom interact with people, I am asking further that
each one of you takes it upon yourself to get another 10 members to
contribute.
Seal Alert-SA Postal Address. SEAL ALERT-SA, BOX 221, POSTNET, HOUT
BAY, 7872, SOUTH AFRICA
HEREWITH IS FURTHER
DETAILS FOR BANK TRANSFERS:
ZAR is South AfricanRand
More information to be able to send the money via
internet:
SEAL ALERT-SA ACC : 911 2201 321
BRANCH CODE : 632 005
SWIFT CODE : ABSAZAJJ
BANK : ABSA
SA NAT.CLEARING CODE
BIC: (SWIFT-CODE) ABSAZAJJ
Bank name : ABSA
Address : DELPHI ARCH OFFICE PARK, RAATS DRIVE, TABLE
VIEW
City/code : TABLE VIEW, 7439
Country : South Africa
Seal
Alert-SA Pledge
I
hereby Pledge to send Seal Alert-SA $25 monthly. It is to be used
exclusively for Cape Fur Seal Rescue, Rehabilitation, Conservation
and Protection (Could each 50th member please fw the details of
this pledge and email back to
sasealion@wam.co.za , who will in turn
keep you informed if our pledge target of 500 has been
reached).
Francois Hugo Seal Alert-SA
Please List your Name, Country and Email Address.
Pledge Supporters
:
1. Francois
Hugo
South
Africa
sasealion@wam.co.za
2. Nelda
Hugo South
Africa
eggs@wam.co.za
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