Post by Google

Our offices in Mountain View are home to a host of wildlife, thanks in part to our ongoing conservation efforts: monarch butterflies, honeybees, rare birds and more. But in January, the Google campus got one of its most unlikely visitors yet: a six-month-old California sea lion. Later affectionately named Babymac, the wayward pup had somehow wandered far from home and wound up in one of our parking lots. Babymac was quickly rescued with the help of concerned Googlers, our Global Security Operations Center (GSOC) team and the Mountain View police, who kept him safe until responders from The Marine Mammal Center were able to transport him to the center for rehabilitation. He faced a long road to recovery from severe malnutrition and other maladies. Fortunately, Babymac thrived in his treatment at The Marine Mammal Center. After graduating from a special fish smoothie mixture to eating whole herrings on his own, Babymac successfully gained the weight he needed to. In March, he passed a release exam, and was safely returned to the wild in Point Reyes, California. “We are thrilled Babymac made such positive strides in recovery and was able to be released back to his ocean home,” says Dr. Emily Whitmer, a clinical veterinarian at The Marine Mammal Center. As for future visits? “We always enjoy visitors at our offices at Google,” says Robert Ortiz Carlos of GSOC operational support. “But if Babymac decides to visit in the future, he’ll need to be signed in at the kiosk and escorted. Hopefully one trip to the Googleplex is enough for a lifetime.”