The Silky Seal Pup (2 page)
Read The Silky Seal Pup Online
Authors: Amelia Cobb
Zoe burst into the cottage. “Great-Uncle Horace!” she called as she kicked off her shoes and ran inside. “I can’t believe you’re back!”
Zoe’s mum popped into the hallway. “We’re in the living room,” she explained in a whisper. “Try to be quiet, love – our new arrival is asleep!”
Zoe’s tummy was suddenly full of butterflies. She’d been so eager to see Great-Uncle Horace, she’d almost forgotten that he might have a new animal for the Rescue Zoo! She and Meep grinned at each other. Meeting new creatures was one of their favourite things about living at the zoo.
“What do you think Goo has brought back, Zoe?” whispered Meep excitedly as they tiptoed into the living room. Zoe giggled at Meep’s cute nickname for her great-uncle.
Great-Uncle Horace was sitting in a comfy chair with a cup of tea and a plate of his favourite custard cream biscuits next to him. His friendly brown eyes lit up when he saw Zoe. Kiki, the hyacinth macaw who went everywhere with
Great-Uncle Horace, was perched on the back of the chair, preening her beautiful blue feathers. And huddled on Great-Uncle Horace’s lap was a ball of pure white fluff.
Meep squeaked curiously. “Zoe, what is it?” he whispered. “It looks just like a big fuzzy snowball.”
Zoe grinned. “I think it’s a baby seal!”
Great-Uncle Horace beamed. “That’s right, my dear!” he said. “She’s a harp seal pup, and she’s just a week old. Come and have a closer look.”
As Zoe and Meep crept forward, the seal woke up. Slowly, a pair of huge, inky-black eyes blinked open and stared at them. Then the baby seal twitched her black nose and whiskers, and looked nervously at Great-Uncle Horace.
“She’s quite timid,” Great-Uncle Horace explained. “She’s had a rather scary time, I’m afraid. She was taken from her home by hunters.”
Zoe gasped. “That’s awful!”
Great-Uncle Horace nodded gravely. “A baby seal’s splendid white coat is very valuable to some people. Luckily, Kiki and I found her just in time – and I knew
the Rescue Zoo was the right home for her!”
Gently, Zoe reached out and stroked the pup’s fluffy white head. “She’s so beautiful,” she said.
“And a fascinating animal too!” said Great-Uncle Horace. “Did you know that baby harp seals learn to swim and find their own food when they are just a few weeks old? Truly incredible. And even though seals live in some of the coldest oceans in the world, they’re actually warm-blooded mammals – just like tigers, or elephants. Their beautiful coats and a thick layer of blubber keep them toasty and warm.”
Zoe sat cross-legged on the floor in front of her great-uncle with Meep on her shoulder. She loved it when Great-Uncle
Horace told her about animals! “What’s a group of seals called?” she asked.
“Well, there are a few different names,” Great-Uncle Horace replied. “Some people call it a herd, some a rookery, and others a pod.”
“Like a group of dolphins!” said Zoe. “That’s who we were visiting today, before you arrived.” Suddenly a thought popped into her head. “Great-Uncle Horace, why didn’t you let anyone know you were coming home? Normally you sail your hot-air balloon right over the whole zoo, so all the animals know you’ve arrived.”
To her surprise, Great-Uncle Horace blushed bright pink. “Well…er…would you like a custard cream?” he asked quickly, holding out the plate of biscuits.
Zoe glanced down at Meep, who looked just as puzzled as she felt. Was Great-Uncle Horace trying to keep his arrival a secret for some reason? Before she could say anything, her uncle continued. “I almost forgot! I have some more exciting news, Zoe,” Great-Uncle Horace smiled. “I’ve brought home some wonderful chrysalises. They’re the little homes that caterpillars make for themselves when they are getting ready to turn into butterflies. They’re still in the balloon, and I must take them to the butterfly room at Higgins Hall before they hatch. Would you like to come?”
Zoe hesitated. She loved butterflies, but she was eager to try and speak to the seal pup alone. New animals were sometimes nervous when they arrived at the zoo, and
Zoe always tried to give them a friendly welcome in the special way that only she could! “Can I stay here and help the baby seal settle in?” she asked hopefully.
Great-Uncle Horace nodded, smiling. “Of course, my dear! I know you’ll take excellent care of her.”
He stood up, with the seal cradled in his arms, and held her out to Zoe. Zoe scrambled up on to the sofa and Great-Uncle Horace carefully placed the seal pup in her arms so she could hold her like a baby. Zoe gasped as she cuddled the little seal. She was so soft and warm! As Zoe looked down at her, the pup gazed up with her big black eyes, her sweet black nose snuffling curiously. She was absolutely beautiful!
Before he left, Great-Uncle Horace turned to Lucy. “I’ll see you at the, er, I mean,
in the morning
,” he added mysteriously.
Lucy walked him and Kiki to the door and waved them off. Meep hopped on to Zoe’s shoulder. “What’s happening in the morning?” he squeaked.
“I have no idea,” Zoe whispered back. Great-Uncle Horace was acting strangely, but she wasn’t too worried. He was probably just planning his next adventure. Anyway, she had other things to think about – like the gorgeous, silky seal pup!
Once Great-Uncle Horace had left, Lucy popped her head round the living room door. “We’ll let the pup sleep here tonight, until Lorna the seal keeper comes to work tomorrow and gets her enclosure ready,” she told Zoe. “Can you look after her while I make a bottle of milk?”
Zoe nodded eagerly. As soon as her
mum went into the kitchen, she lowered her voice to a soft, friendly whisper. “My name’s Zoe,” she told the pup, who was still cuddled up in her arms. “And this is my best friend, Meep.”
“I’m a grey mouse lemur,” Meep chirped proudly. “What’s your name?”
The pup’s eyes opened wide. She hesitated, then gave a timid squeak.
“Star? That’s such a pretty name,” replied Zoe, smiling. “Welcome to the Rescue Zoo, Star.”
Star squeaked again, very nervously. Zoe realised the poor little seal was trembling. “No, there are no bad people here,” she reassured Star. “The horrible people who snatched you are far away now. Everyone at the Rescue Zoo cares about animals more than anything.”
Meep gave a warning squeak as he heard Lucy coming back from the kitchen. Zoe quickly stopped talking.
“Here we go!” announced Lucy, walking in with a bottle. “Do you want to give her the first feed, Zoe?”
“Yes, please!” said Zoe. She loved feeding baby animals! Carefully, she moved Star so she was leaning against one arm, and took the bottle with her free hand. As soon as she offered it to Star, the seal started to gulp hungrily.
“Is this normal milk from our fridge?” Zoe asked.
Lucy shook her head. “It’s special milk replacement,” she explained. “Seal milk is the creamiest in the world, much creamier than cow’s or goat’s milk. It’s packed full of goodness for seal babies, to help them
grow strong and stay nice and warm in the freezing-cold conditions. But because this baby’s mum isn’t here to provide milk, we’ll give her this instead. It’s almost as good, although we have to make sure she drinks lots. In fact, we’ll need to do
night-time
feeding, as well as day.”
“I’ll help,” offered Zoe. She wouldn’t mind getting up in the middle of the night to feed a gorgeous baby animal like this one!
Star hiccuped as she finished the bottle, and snuggled happily against Zoe’s tummy.
“I think she enjoyed that!” said Lucy, smiling. “Now it’s time for
our
dinner, Zoe. Pasta for us, and seeds for Meep.”
They had dinner sitting on the sofa because Star was still nestled cosily
against Zoe and they didn’t want to disturb her after her long journey.
“We’ll have to think of a name for the seal!” Lucy said as they ate. “Do you have any ideas yet, Zoe? You’re always so good at choosing names for our new arrivals.”
Meep giggled, and Zoe did her best to hide a smile. She picked the right names because the animals told her what they were called! “How about Star?” she suggested.
“Star the seal. That’s very pretty!” said Lucy approvingly.
After dinner, they all cuddled up together to watch a film about blue whales. After a few minutes, Zoe glanced down at Star to make sure the noise wasn’t frightening her. But the little pup had fallen fast asleep, her tummy rising
and falling gently. Suddenly Zoe found herself yawning.
“Let’s watch the rest of the film tomorrow,” suggested Lucy. “It looks like everyone needs a good night’s sleep! Why don’t you and Meep go to bed? I’ll set my alarm for midnight so I can give Star her next feed. I promise you can be in charge of her breakfast bottle.”
Zoe hugged her mum and gave Star a gentle goodnight cuddle before heading upstairs. She brushed her teeth, put on her green, frog-patterned pyjamas, then climbed into bed. Meep snuggled up next to her, his tiny ears poking out from under the covers. “I like Star!” he chattered.
“Me too,” Zoe whispered back. “And I think she likes us, Meep, even though she was so nervous to begin with.”
She kissed the top of Meep’s soft little head and switched off her bedside lamp. “Goodnight, Meep. We’ll have lots of fun showing Star around the zoo tomorrow!”
“Zoe! Wake up!”
Zoe blinked sleepily. She’d been having a funny dream about hippos, until a gentle nibbling on her ear had woken
her up. Her bedroom was still dark, with moonlight streaming through a gap in the curtains, but Meep was tugging urgently at her pyjama sleeve. “W-what time is it, Meep? What’s wrong?” Zoe asked, rubbing her eyes and yawning.
“It’s still night-time, Zoe,” Meep told her, hopping up and down anxiously. “But I think Star is crying.”
Suddenly Zoe was wide awake. She listened, and heard a faint whimpering from downstairs. Meep’s clever ears could hear the smallest sounds. “Poor Star!” she whispered, jumping out of bed. “Come on, Meep – but keep quiet, so we don’t wake Mum. If we’re alone with Star we can ask her what’s wrong.”
Zoe pulled on her dressing gown and scooped Meep into her arms. She crept
on to the landing and tiptoed down the stairs, trying not to make them creak. The cottage was quiet, but as she pushed open the kitchen door she heard the sad whimper again.
“Star?” she asked softly, flicking on the light. “It’s us, Zoe and Meep!”
Lucy had made Star a bed in a box full of cosy blankets, and the little seal was huddled inside it, shaking. Zoe rushed over and picked her up. Star snuggled her soft head against Zoe’s shoulder, sniffling miserably. “What’s
wrong? Are you hungry?” Zoe asked, glancing at the clock on the microwave. “It’s one o’clock in the morning! Didn’t my mum feed you at midnight?”
Star squeaked sadly. Zoe felt her heart melt as the shivering pup explained that Lucy
had
come to feed her, but then she’d left Star all by herself again. And the little seal was scared of the dark!
Meep looked puzzled. His special eyes could see just as well at night as they could in bright daylight! But Zoe understood why the pup was frightened. Sometimes the dark
was
scary, especially if you were in a new place. “It’s all right, I promise,” she said soothingly. “We’re in our lovely, warm cottage. Meep and I are just upstairs, and so is my mum.”
Star stopped crying as Zoe cuddled her
close. “That’s better,” Zoe said, smiling. “See? There’s nothing to worry about. Let’s pop you back in your cosy bed, and we’ll see you in the morning.”
The seal pup let out another whimper, and Zoe saw tears in her beautiful dark eyes. “Oh, don’t cry, Star!” Zoe gasped.
Zoe and Meep glanced at each other. “What shall we do?” Meep whispered.
Zoe bit her lip worriedly. “We can’t leave her here like this, Meep. But we can’t stay in the kitchen all night either! We’ll have to take her up to my bedroom.”
Star gave a happy squeak and Meep clapped his tiny hands excitedly. “Shhhh!” Zoe smiled as she carried them upstairs.
Back in her room, she tucked Star and Meep up together, and was relieved to
hear a happy sigh from the baby seal. Then she opened her curtains wide so that her room was bathed in bright moonlight. “There. It’s hardly dark at all now!” she whispered to Star. The little seal’s eyes were already starting to close.
Zoe slipped under the covers next to Star, and the little seal snuggled up to her, making the most adorable snuffly noises. As Zoe cuddled her, she wondered what her mum would say about Star sleeping in her bed.
I’m sure she won’t mind, just this once
, she thought, crossing her fingers tightly as she drifted off to sleep.