Officers relocate sea lion that wandered into Pismo Beach hotel

By Delaney White

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    PISMO BEACH, California (KSBY) — On Wednesday morning, a sea lion climbed multiple flights of stairs at a Pismo Beach hotel, causing quite a stir.

“California sea lions are really interesting because they can actually walk on all fours so they are really great climbers and because of that we tend to see them in very unusual locations,” said Aliah Meza, Marine Mammal Center Morro Bay Field Office Operations Manager.

That includes the top of this staircase at the Sandcastle Hotel in Pismo Beach.

“This is the time of year where mom is actually preparing for her new pup and so these pups are being weened and this is about the time that they’re venturing out on their own,” Meza explained.

Meza said that is likely what happened Wednesday morning.

“It likely negatively interacted with some people on the beach and then kind of went up onto the stairwell and that’s when the police department got the call,” Meza said.

At approximately 1:16 a.m. Wednesday, the Pismo Beach Police Department received a call about a sea lion on the property of the Sandcastle Hotel.

“When they got there it kind of ran away from them or waddled away from them and went up several flights of stairs,” said Pismo Beach Police Department Operations Commander Chris Trimble.

Commander Trimble said he can’t recall anything like this happening in the past.

“They were able to use a dog-catching device and then take it, get it into custody or take it under control and back down to the ground floor and release it back onto the beach,” Trimble said.

If you do encounter marine life on the beach or anywhere where you think it might need assistance, it’s best to call the Marine Mammal Center response hotline at 415-289-SEAL (7235).

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