Nine Cape Fur seals test positive for rabies in Mossel Bay

The Stranded Marine Animal Rescue Team (SMART) have warned holidaymakers and residents along the Garden Route coast, not to approach live or dead seals on beaches due to the rabies outbreak.

At least nine Cape Fur seals have tested positive for the disease in the Mossel Bay area.

With the festive season approaching, beaches will be busy. Even surfers have been cautioned to exit the water if they encounter a seal.

Rabies can be fatal to humans and has one of the highest mortality rates of any infectious diseases.

Val Marsh, a volunteer from SMART, says, “Contact us and let us know and we have the people, our volunteers who will go down and assess the situation. Also, it is coming up to black pup season when the seals on Seal Island give birth to their little pups and they sometimes in bad weather wash out on our beaches. Please do not approach these black pups, do not pick them up. They are born with teeth.”