Islay Seal Rescue
Boat  Appeal

from Fiona of the Seals, Chairperson of the Save Our Seals Fund

Bought for us by readers of the Daily Mail during the seal disease crisis of 1988 our Osprey Sparrowhawk has braved its last breaker. Fourteen years of hard work have taken their toll and it is no longer viable to repair the engines or fabric of our boat.

As well as patrolling our sanctuary and rescuing injured and abandoned seals we used the boat to give journalists controlled access to the seal colonies, thus publicising the plight of the seals and educating the public to the need to protect them.

Since my book Seal  was published in Japan we have had visits from several Japanese print, radio and television journalists. As a result I have been able to get the message across in Japan that marine mammals belong in the ocean and not on the dinner plate. I am really heartened by the response from my new Japanese audience, especially younger readers and viewers, who truly understand the worth of protecting our marine environment and the creatures which live there.

In the last year Save Our Seals Fund has been able to assist Orkney Seal Rescue to purchase a mobile seal rescue unit. We covered the costs of repairs to the seal holding pool at Skye Environmental Centre. We also paid for medical equipment for seals at the Highland Wildlife Hospital and also helped the seal rescue centre on Shetland.

However the replacement boat for Islay is a bit out of our league. We have set £3,000 aside to start the appeal but the best quote we have had for a suitable boat, engines and new safety equipment is £18,000.

Over the summer of 2002 we were able to borrow an inshore fisherman's boat to check the seals on the outlying islands. However we cannot use this when he is out fishing and it is too dangerous to take it through the reefs and skerries in bad weather. Now that the phocine distemper virus has reached our shores again it is vital we replace our rescue boat.

If you can help us to do this it would be most appreciated. You can help by buying my album Today The Seals, my book Seal, or some of the other merchandise on our "Campaign Goods" page.

You can also post a donation by clicking HERE

or send a donation via Paypal by clicking

 

Please help us to help the people of the sea.

Yours for the seals,

Fiona Middleton,
Chairperson, Save Our Seals Fund.
Kildalton,
Isle of Islay, October 2002.