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If you’ve snapped a picture with the seals at Cape Town’s Hout Bay harbour, consider yourself called out.

The seals have for a long time attracted visitors who interact with them for a small donation to informal ‘handlers’ of the animals, posting the pics to their social media for entertainment.

While it might not seem obvious, as the handlers seem to have a loving relationship with the seals, the SPCA has taken action after realising that the animals were being abused and exploited.

The chief inspector of the Cape of Good Hope SPCA, Jaco Pieterse, warned on the organisation’s website: “Exploiting these wild animals for the sake of getting a good picture for your social media platforms is not only morally and ethically wrong, it also perpetuates a cycle of abuse and cruelty. Please prioritise their welfare over how many likes and shares you can generate online.”

SPCA communication manager, Belinda Abraham, told Daily Maverick that the aversive training methods were the main issue with using animals for entertainment:

“The real cruelty is not generally apparent when the animals are performing. We received a complaint of just such an example where an eyewitness reported one of these seals being beaten with a plank of wood. This is what prompted the Cape of Good Hope SPCA to act,” she said.

“We have a record of all investigations undertaken by the SPCA. Two seals were found to be obese. They were overfed, with two of them presenting as obese at the time of their rescue. This is an unheard-of condition in the wild and the likely result of the seals being prevented from expressing their natural behaviour, including swimming and hunting for their own fish.”

The Daily Maverick reports that while the Department of Forestries, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), the city and the SPCA are urging people not to harass the seals for social media content, the SPCA has also freed five seals subjected to abuse and exploitation at the Hout Bay Harbour.

“The seals have endured various illegal activities, including beatings, overfeeding and being forced to engage in various physical interactions with humans —all driven by human need for entertainment and financial gain,” notes the animal welfare organisation.

On November 8, the Cape of Good Hope SPCA obtained an order from the Wynberg Magistrates’ Court allowing it to seize the five seals. Then, this past weekend, the seals were relocated 900 kilometres away from the harbour to an undisclosed location “for their own protection and in the hopes that they will not be able to find their way back to the harbour again”.

“We hope that this will afford them the opportunity to live in an environment free of coercion and abuse and where they can freely express their natural behaviours.”

Indeed, harassment by the public of Cape fur seals along the coast is becoming a real concern, according to Peter Mbelengwa, chief director of communication and advocacy at the DFFE.

He mentioned that these incidents have included allowing dogs to approach or attack resting seals, throwing stones at seals, enticing seals to chase people for social media footage or feeding seals for financial gain.

Mbelengwa mentioned that these activities constitute harassment and are therefore a criminal offence in terms of the regulations and are dangerous both to the public and to the seals.

People are urged to report any concerns they have to the department, the SPCA or the City of Cape Town.

[source:dailymaverick]