Tossing plastic may be convenient when there's no garbage can in sight, but it can be devastating for wildlife.
While plastic makes the wildlife habitat unpleasant, it can also greatly harm the animals. For example, who could forget about the poor turtle crying from pain because a plastic straw was lodged in his nose?
Thankfully that turtle was saved, like the seal pup below who faced similar pain when a nylon fishing net became tightly wrapped around her neck.
When she was found in Vancouver Island in Canada, the seal pup was very weak and very underweight. This led rescuers to believe the pup had been suffering from the injury for about a month.
The pup, who was named after Canadian Olympian Maelle Ricker, was luckily released back into the wild three months after she was found, as you'll see in the heartwarming clip below.
But, animal activists hope this will be a lesson for all.
"I feel like we are hearing more of these stories and, unfortunately, I think it's going to continue if we don't take better care of our litter," an official from the Vancouver Aquarium says. "It's because once [plastic] is out, it doesn't break down; it doesn't go anywhere."
Watch below and please SHARE to encourage everyone to be more mindful of our wildlife!
Warning: The video contains an image of the injury that may be difficult for some to view.
