´óÏó´«Ã½

A seal pup had to be rescued by walkers amid claims it was pelted with stones on a Conwy county beach.

The pup had injuries to its face and body when it was found alone 300m (985ft) from the water at Pensarn Beach, Abergele, at about 08:00 GMT.

One of the rescuers Tony Roberts said he bundled the "feisty" seal into his car.

The RSPCA said the animal was recovering but warned against approaching seals.

Mr Roberts, 52, who runs the North Wales Canine Hydrotherapy Centre in Abergele, said he was walking his springer spaniel, Dibby, and labrador, Dexter, when he spotted the animal.

He said it had gashes to its jaw and back and was looking "sorry for itself", with its mother nowhere to be seen.

Mr Roberts took the dogs home before enlisting the help of another man, "rather ridiculously" slipping a dog lead around its neck.

He said would not recommend it but the pair managed to get the seal, whom they nicknamed George, up the embankment and secured it in his car.

"We were lucky," he added. "They may look cute but they have quite sharp bits on the end. He was a feisty little [one]."

warns members of the public to observe any stranded seals "from a distance", not to approach them, keep dogs away and to contact the RSPCA after 24 hours if they appear unhealthy.

"They can give a nasty bite, which will become infected by the bacteria that live in a seal's mouth," the advice says.

Mr Roberts, of Rhos-on-Sea, said another dog walker told him he had seen "some youths chucking rocks at the seals the day before".

However, Mr Roberts could not confirm whether that was how the seal was hurt.

The rescuers called the RSPCA and an inspector came to transfer the seal to a specialist centre to recover.