Interventions
If you think an otter is in distress, it is often best to watch and wait …
Sue Morley, MOG’s North Mull contact for otter emergencies, received a call from workers at Scottish Sea Farms. There was an otter cub which seemed to have been alone all day, intermittently calling for its Mum, but no one had seen her. The pup was shivering. The workers were due to leave work and were concerned. They showed Sue where to look. When she and Darren investigated further they spotted not one but two cubs, around twelve weeks old.
Sue takes up the story. “Darren and I decided to wait an hour or so to see if mum would come for them.
I left the site to go home for more supplies if needed: an extra cage, a catch pole and fish to bait a trap. While I was away, Darren had had a very slight glimpse of an adult otter near the cubs’ hidey hole. We decided to sit and wait until the tide came in, hoping that the mother would come back.
After three and a half hours, we blinked and the otter cubs were in the water with their mother. They appeared extremely relieved to see her, jumping on her as she brought them to shore. We were so relieved that we did not need to intervene.”
We love a story with a happy ending!
If you find a dead or injured otter on Mull, contact:
North Mull: Sue Morley 07968438525
South Mull: Nigel Burch 07900918857
