Food Storage

The amount of food sea otters consume each day means there are a lot of opportunities for food-born pathogens to contaminate the otter’s diet. Proper short and long term storage of food is key for avoiding contaminated or unsafe food.

In general, sea otter food should always be kept on ice but not frozen when being fed to the sea otter. In between feedings, food should be stored in a cold room or refrigerator. In the video below, Beau Richter, Head Animal Trainer for the Long Marine Lab Marine Mammal Physiology Project, outlines the guidelines for safe short and long term storage of sea otter food in a rehabilitation or captive setting.

Media

Proper Food Storage for Sea Otters The Inner Otter