Saving Sea Otter 696: Learning From Mom

It's a lot of work being an otter! Luckily, orphaned pup 696 has surrogate mom Rosa to teach him how to dive, collect food, and other skills he'll need to survive in the wild.

Over the past 30 years, over 700 sea otters—adults and pups—have come through the Sea Otter Program, and the Aquarium's staff and veterinarians have developed diets and care protocols that have resulted in a high survival rate. Until the Aquarium began caring for stranded sea otter pups in 1984, no one knew how to keep pups alive once they became separated from their mothers.