ENCINITAS, Calif. -- SeaWorld crews rescued a young sea lion Tuesday after beachgoers noticed a diver's swim mask lodged around its neck.
When the male sea lion pup was spotted at Swami's Beach in Encinitas, he was malnourished and dehydrated, according to SeaWorld San Diego. The mask, estimated to have been wrapped around the pup's neck for several weeks, was preventing it from foraging and eating.
After the rescue team cut the mask off, they saw the resulting wound on the pup's neck was infected. Rescuers brought the pup to SeaWorld's Animal Health and Rescue Center, where a veterinarian treated the pup and gave him an antibiotic.
The park will monitor the pup during his rehabilitation in hopes of returning him to the ocean in the next few months.
