SeaWorld San Diego gave an update on a rescued otter pup, announcing on Thursday that she has roughly doubled in weight and reached all expected development milestones since arriving at the theme park earlier this month.
The pup, named Cinder, arrived at SeaWorld in early September, just five weeks old after she was found stranded near Homer, Alaska, in August. She was initially taken to the Homer Vet Clinic, then transferred to the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward before being flown to SeaWorld for constant care in the park's sea otter nursery.
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Animal care staff have been feeding her formula every three hours and helping to teach her how to swim and groom herself, according to SeaWorld. After arriving dehydrated and underweight at just five pounds, Cinder is now just over 10 pounds.
Eventually, Cinder is expected to join the park's four other female otters, all of whom were also rescued as pups and range in age from 5 to 9 years old.
The rescue team has rescued and rehabilitated more than 800 marine animals this year, many of them California sea lions and various species of seals.
The team has also rescued and rehabilitated one sea turtle and more than 600 marine birds.
SeaWorld San Diego's rescue team has saved and rehabilitated more than 20,000 animals since the park's founding in 1964. The theme park chain's three locations in San Diego, Orlando and San Antonio have rescued more than 35,000 animals combined.
