Freddie had already been saved three times. A hook in her mouth, a couple more scares, and she always returned to her favorite pier near Hammersmith Bridge in London, where locals and tourists recognized her from afar.
On Sunday, March 21, 2021, she was basking in the sun on the banks of the Thames when an off-leash dog went for her. It shook her again and again while several people, including a veterinarian, tried to separate them by shouting. The seal, just 9 months old, ended up with a fractured flipper, a dislocated joint, and nerve damage.
She was taken to the South Essex Wildlife Hospital, but she did not tolerate the anesthesia well, and her injuries were irreversible. The veterinarians decided to euthanize her the next day so as not to prolong her suffering. The dog’s owner, a 49-year-old lawyer, issued a public apology — but faced no charges. Freddie survived three different emergencies, and the fourth, the one that could have been prevented with a leash, was the one she did not survive.
