Video Shows Seal Breaking Into Home, Terrorizing Cat and Hanging Out on Couch

It isn't totally uncommon to find an uninvited visitor in your home every once in a while. Perhaps a bat slipped in through the fireplace, or a bird through an open door. Maybe a mouse or rat (gasp!) is nibbling on some crumbs or a stray cat somehow found its way in. However, one family in New Zealand was in for the shock of their lives when an unexpected house guest broke into their home and terrorized their cat: A seal. Read on to see how it happened, what the seal did, and how they got the seal out.

The Ross family, who resides in the seaside town of Mr. Maunganui, New Zealand, were shocked to find a seal in their home on Wednesday morning. During the seal's visit he bugged the family's cat. 

Phil Ross, a marine biologist, wasn't home at the time, when the seal decided to visit. "The big joke is that this is really the only family emergency where it would be useful to have a marine biologist in the house. I really missed my time to shine. His wife, Jenn, was home with the couple's two boys who were sleeping. She got up at 6:00 am to go to the gym. As she got in the car, something barked from underneath and shuffled away. She thought it was someone's dog … and didn't really think too much of it," he said to The Guardian. 

When she returned at 7:00 am, she found the "cute little seal" in the hallway. "It got a bit of a fright and humped its way down the hallway into the spare room." Ross believes that the seal ran into the family cat outside and ran in through the cat doors. "The cat would have gone to defend its territory and obviously the seal wasn't as intimidated as some dogs are, so Coco must have bolted around the side of the house, into the catflap, and the seal must have followed her."

Jen woke up their sleeping children, Noah, 12, and Ari, 10. "They thought it was cool and pretty exciting but were totally oblivious to the fact that … not many of their mates would have seals come to visit them in their houses." After spending time in the spare room under the couch, Jen ushered the seal out of the front door. Shortly after, a Department of Conservation ranger showed up at 10:00 am to take the seal back to the sea, after a busy morning of other seal-related calls. According to Ross, seals regularly roam around the neighborhood at this time of year. "I guess, like all teenagers, they don't necessarily make sensible decisions."

According to Ross, seals regularly roam around the neighborhood at this time of year. "I guess, like all teenagers, they don't necessarily make sensible decisions."

Luckily, during the seal's visit, nothing was damaged as the animal, who they named "Oscar" had not defecated. "I think that would have been pretty terminal for the furniture," Ross said.