Planned Parenthood

LuSeal, an 11-year-old rescue seal who lives at the Woods Hole Science Aquarium in Cape Cod, gets Depo Provera, the birth control shot, to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Here’s her story: 

Stranded on a beach as a month-old pup, LuSeal was rehabbed at the aquarium before being declared a “failure to thrive” and becoming a permanent resident. A few years later LuSeal was joined by Bumper, a male seal who came to the aquarium for rehab after a shark attacked him. Soon after, Bumper developed an infection that gave him permanent-resident status at the aquarium as well.

They might not be able to live independent lives, but that doesn’t mean Bumper and LuSeal don’t know how to have a good time. So Luseal gets injections of Depo Provera during the months of the year that she’s fertile (fun fact: seals only mate during certain times of the year).

Like a lot of sexually active women who don’t want to get pregnant, cost was a big consideration when choosing a birth control method for LuSeal. The aquarium settled on the shot because it’s less expensive than other methods, like surgery. Here’s to safer seal sex!