A man heroically saves a running baby seal that is entangled in a plastic strap.

Schalk Louw, a guide at Pelican Point Kayaking in Walvis Bay, Namibia, was on tour when he spotted the animal.

"If left like that, it would have grown into it very fast and the strap would have slowly suffocated it", he said.

Louw kayaked to shore, ran towards the large group of seals, and caught the baby. He used the paddle as a distraction and held the animal to avoid ben bit as seals have a nasty bite when threatened even as a pup.

"I managed to cut the strap off and the seal was free again to swim and play with its mates".

Hi. Im Schalk (SJ) Louw, im a guide at Pelican Point Kayaking and while on tour i spotted a baby seal entangled in a packaging strap. If left like that they will grow into it very fast and it will slowly suffocate them and cut into them. So saving them is a must. I kayaked to shore, ran in amongst them and caught the seal. Using the paddle as somewhat of a distraction, i secured myself on top of the seal without hurting him, just holding him so he doesn’t struggle, slip out and bite me. They have a nasty bite when threatened even as a pup. I managed to cut the strap off and he was free again to swim and play with his mates. Man what a crazy story that must’ve been for them when he got back hey.

Please note the following:
(i work for Naude Dreyer who also runs Ocean Conservation Namibia. All footage i upload is my own and does not belong to OCN. Also please bare in mind that the way i do my rescues does not hurt or harm the seals. I have been doing rescues for many years now and it can be dangerous so please dont try this at home. Ive learned from the best. Thanks Naude. )