SeaWorld Reaches Milestone of 43,000 Animal Rescues, Underscoring the Ongoing Need to Help Animals in Need

An orphaned California sea lion pup is now the 43,000th animal that SeaWorld has rescued since the start of its rescue program in 1965.

Early in May, SeaWorld Rescue in San Diego rescued the young, orphaned California sea lion pup that was found alone on the back stairs of a beach house in Carlsbad, Calif. Upon assessment and intake at the SeaWorld Rescue Center, the almost one-year old female pup was emaciated and dehydrated. The team is providing her with fluids and formula.

“She’s in the process of learning how to find and hunt on her own. By this age, they are eating at least a little bit of fish while also nursing from mom. However, at some point, the mother says goodbye and if they aren’t proficient at hunting yet (most of them are), they get thin and dehydrated. If all goes well, she’ll be out there in a few weeks eating on her own,” said Eric Otjen, SeaWorld San Diego’s Vice President of Zoo.

SeaWorld rescue teams, located in Orlando, San Diego and San Antonio, are on call 24×7, 365 days a year. The more than 43,000 animals rescued span diverse species such as sea and shore birds, pinnipeds, turtles, manatees, whales, dolphins, otters and a wide range of other mammals and fish. Each and every rescue is done in coordination with the appropriate local, state and national officials, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

In the first few months of 2026, SeaWorld Rescue teams in Florida provided medical assistance and rehabilitation to 21 manatees and a baby dolphin, along with nearly 40 turtles/reptiles and several birds. SeaWorld Orlando has the largest manatee rescue operation in the U.S., and one of only five critical care centers in the U.S. Its five-acre rescue center can care for up to 60 manatees at a time.

One of those success stories from earlier this year was Melby, the manatee rescued from a storm drain in Melbourne Beach, Fla. Melby was rehabilitated at SeaWorld Orlando and released back to his natural habitat on April 7 after gaining more than 100 pounds.

At SeaWorld San Diego, in the first five months of the year, the team has rescued more than 40 pinnipeds (seals and sea lions), a dolphin and nearly 150 birds.

“Our rescue teams, like all of our zoological professionals, are made up of compassionate and skilled animal care specialists who devote countless hours to helping animals in need,” said Dr. Chris Dold, Chief Zoological Officer at United Parks & Resorts, SeaWorld’s parent company. “Rescue and rehabilitation can save the lives of individual animals, and in some cases supports the preservation of endangered and threatened species, like the Florida manatee. That is why we do this work, and why it is so important for accredited zoos and aquariums like ours to continue efforts to help animals that cannot survive on their own.”

SeaWorld has passionately dedicated time, energy, and resources to help a wide range of animal species since its first rescue of a beached Dall’s porpoise in 1965. SeaWorld is a professionally accredited zoo and one of the largest marine animal rescue organizations in the world. SeaWorld is part of a large network that includes state and federal wildlife agencies (NOAA, USFWS), non-government animal rescue organizations, and other zoos and aquariums that work together to protect marine animals and their habitats.