Update- Sea lion vanished from Noyo Beach and has not been back. Story update coming- will be very in depth about what is happening with sea lions right now
Sick sea lion collapses on Noyo Beach, contagious disease it may have poses big risk to dogs, even people
A large, visibly ill sea lion emerged from the water and collapsed on the sand about 4:30 pm on Wednesday. We were trying to keep children and dogs at a safe distance while contacting the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito to report the incident.
We were told that people should treat this as if it were for sure a case leptospirosis – a serious bacterial infection that affects the kidneys and stay away. There is an epidemic of the disease happening in sea lions right now. No proof this one has it but beaching Is a sign of it and the sea lion appeared sick. Other markers for the disease were absent. We will follow up..
Before lab results even come back, veterinarians can easily spot the disease in sea lions from some telltale signs, according to a news release from the center. We tried to do that ourself but most of the diagnosis has to do with how he moves. The guy came out of the water, using his rear flippers, then collapsed. Most of the animal with leptospirosis have little use of the rear flippers.
Leptospirosis is a kidney disease caused by a spiral-shaped bacterium called Leptospira. Humans and especially dogs can get this from sick seals and sea lions if they make contact with the animal. It comes from being exposed to the urine of the sick animal.
Here is a fact sheet on the disease
Unfortunately, this is Fort Bragg’s designated off-leash dog beach and it’s crowded – full of people on Wednesday. Tourists we warned had never heard of any of this and assured us the sea lion was likely just tired.
The big animal is halfway down the beach. Please take note and keep yourself and your pets safe. To stay safe around a sea lion potentially infected with leptospirosis, experts recommend you maintain a distance of at least 50 yards, 150 feet.
Read about the epidemic of this disease going on now here.
We will update this story as fast as we can but we put this out quick. We wanted to warn dog owners to stay away as fast as possible.
This California Sea Lion has a bloody cut on its left front flipper, so there could be a different cause than the kidney disease with a very high mortality rate. The last outbreak like this one was in 2023. In general, outbreaks happen about every 4 years, the Center said. There were other aspects to his behaviour. that were very odd. Coming to this beach, coming out and collapsing was odd. And the fact he did not react when dogs approached him Is unusual. He was out of it. Could he have gotten into a red tide, algae bloom or eaten mollucs that made him very sick?
Here is a previous article on this by Frank Hartzell from 2023. It goes into depth on the risk to dogs.
Here is what the Marine Mammal Center posted on Facebook at the time we were reporting this:
Since July, we’ve rescued an unprecedented number of sea lions suffering from leptospirosis 
This potentially deadly kidney infection can transmit easily between these animals and dogs 
Here’s what you need to know 
Give wildlife at least 50 yards (half a football field) of space
Signs of leptospirosis include tucked flippers (as shown), drinking water and lethargy
Call our experts to report marine mammals in need at 415-289-SEAL (7325)
Vaccinate your pets at your local veterinary clinic
Leash pets to keep them away from wildlife and infected water sources
Even with treatment, roughly two-thirds of animals that strand with this infection do not survive. Please, help keep all animals – flippered and furry – safe and share this post to spread the word 
Find more information at https://bit.ly/3QjepIc.
