Colin the abandoned Humpback Whale

[DucksNuts]

Colin, the name given to the baby Humpback Whale that has been trying to suckle boats in Sydney's Pittwater is breaking hearts and raising tempers around Australia.

Some claim he should be put down, others that we should try and feed him with a teat and cows milk.

The Environmental Group have been towing Colin out to sea to hope that he will be adopted, but he keeps coming back into the shallow waters and trying to suckle boats.

A dairy farmer and a marine expert have built contraptions that they hope might allow Colin to feed from, experts are unwilling to let them try in case they *harm* him.

I cant stand the thought of him starving to death, but what happens if we successfully feed him?? How do we keep it up, adjust to his demands as Mum's milk would...wean him and teach him to hunt krill??

If it was just a case of keeping him strong and alive until a pod adopted him, I would be up there myself, holding the funel and pouring the milk. By the marks on his body, looks like he has had a rough trot.

Dr Kruszelnicki, from Sydney University school of physics, said that all infant mammals, including whales, could survive for a reasonable length of time on the same formula used for human babies.

He said it would be possible for an engineer to rig up an artificial teat and feed it formula until a plan had been devised to take it back to sea.

"It's not impossible and the fact it is snuggling up to a boat is a good sign. It could be done," he told The Daily Telegraph.

"And the fact it has never been tried before in the world is a good reason to do it.

"All your are doing is dealing with a mammal that needs to be fed."

The softy in me says DO IT!! Lets make it up as we go along, keep him alive and feed him, try and introduce him to passing pods.

Then again, I got in trouble on turtle island for helping baby turtles to the ocean, rather than letting mother nature do her thang.

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