The 30-inch, 20-pound pup found just south of Fort Bragg was "extremely friendly with the deputies, rubbing against their legs for attention," Mendocino County Sergeant Dustin Lorenzo wrote in a news release.
In late January, the Fort McArthur Marine Mammal Care Center in San Pedro had treated the pup for an ulcer in its left eye. It was released March 16, according to a different Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, which advised the deputies on how to handle the animal.
The sheriff's office and the Fort McArthur center did not return BuzzFeed News' requests for comment.