Family Creates Baikal Seal Rescue Center in Buryatia
Dmitry and Oksana Senotrusov founded Nerpaland in Buryatia after finding a helpless Baikal seal pup on the ice. Since then, they have rescued over a dozen seals, and their center has become famous nationwide.
Sep 26, 2026 0
“I saw those huge eyes and couldn«t walk past.” A family from Buryatia created a seal rescue center — their story
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The Baikal seal rescue center Nerpaland appeared in Buryatia 3 years ago. It was founded by spouses Denis and Oksana Senotrusov after an encounter with a helpless whitecoat seal pup on the ice of Lake Baikal. Despite all efforts, that pup could not be saved, but it was then that the Senotrusov family decided it was no reason to give up. Since then, they have rescued more than a dozen seal pups, many of which were able to return to the wild. One of the center«s founders, Denis Senotrusov, told an IrCity journalist how a single encounter on the ice of Baikal changed everything.
Oksana once served in the army, and now she nurses whitecoat seal pups
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Dehydrated, with flippers and skin worn to bleeding
The video story of the seal Sergeevna
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Every morning at Nerpaland begins with the same procedure. Denis and Oksana Senotrusov check the water quality in the pool where the seal pups live. Center staff take samples and adjust filters and equipment. Then they prepare fish for feeding and distribute it to all the inhabitants, who have grown hungry overnight and are ready for breakfast. The day ends with roughly the same ritual.
This is what the seal Sergeevna looked like when she was found. She is the star of Nerpaland
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Currently, three seal pups live at Nerpaland, and all of them need love, attention, and care. Oksana, Denis, and their son Artyom take on all the responsibilities. The whole story began in 2019.
Sergeevna tries to build a lair
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“We went to Baikal for the March holidays, decided to have a small picnic. The weather was wonderful, warm, with a light wind, and we wanted to take a walk on the ice. It was in the Barguzin Bay. On the way back, we found a pup. He was in a very sad state: the whitecoat had been on the surface for a long time, dehydration had set in, and his flippers and skin were worn to bleeding because he had been crawling over ice floes,” says Denis Senotrusov.
Sergeevna swims for the first time
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He notes that even then it was clear that the exhausted whitecoat had almost no chance of survival, but they still could not leave him there. The family called all animal rescue centers in Buryatia and even in Irkutsk, but no one could help. So the Senotrusovs decided to do everything in their power.
The story of how the whitecoat Sergei became Sergeevna
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“I saw those huge eyes and couldn«t walk past. Honestly, our own eyes were wet too,” the interviewee admits.
Sergeevna goes for a walk
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The pup ultimately died, but that did not make the Senotrusovs give up. On the contrary, it was after that that Oksana and Denis began to think that whitecoats should not die.
At first Sergeevna was too lazy to walk on her own
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“There are shelters for cats and dogs, but not for seals. And we thought something like that should appear on Baikal. After everyone refused to help us and said the seal is not a Red Book animal, let it die, we thought that shouldn«t be the case,” says Denis.
At first Sergeevna walked only in Oksana Senotrusova«s arms
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Construction began in 2020 and stretched over several years because the family took on both the expenses and the work entirely themselves. And that was despite neither Oksana nor her husband ever having done anything like this.
Sergeevna loves snow very much; it«s like ice cream to her
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“Oksana served in the army, I had my own business, I was involved in woodworking and tourism. At the same time, if someone had told me that we would have a seal rescue center, I wouldn«t have been very surprised, because we have always loved animals. We had cats, dogs, we helped various shelters,” notes Denis Senotrusov.
After a swim — a little towel
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Building their own animal protection facility turned out to be a very difficult project. If only because seals need special pools, and in the Senotrusovs« home village — Ust-Barguzin — there was not a single person who could advise how to do it.
Sergeevna meets other seals for the first time
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“Our population is only 8,000 people. We are 260 kilometers from Ulan-Ude, and even there there aren«t many specialists. So I had to study the internet and watch videos on the topic. We bought an old refrigerator car, set up technical rooms on its basis, and built pools. We did almost everything ourselves,” says Denis.
But for now she swims cautiously
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“A little white fluffy baby with huge eyes”
At first Sergeevna couldn«t sleep in the water and suffered from insomnia, so she had to be taken out onto land
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In 2023, the Nerpaland center was completed and received a license to keep animals. In just over three years of operation, the Senotrusovs have already rescued 15 seals. Another three whitecoats currently undergoing rehabilitation will also soon be released into Baikal, bringing the number of saved lives to 18.
Sergeevna also likes rings and mattresses
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Denis and Oksana do not share the opinion of many scientists who believe that seals do not need saving. The argument that this is natural selection is not accepted by the Senotrusovs.
“You could treat all living organisms that way, including humans. Not help and say it«s natural selection. We disagree with that position and believe that saving seals is not only helping the animals themselves. Ours is a social project that allows us to save people, humanity, and empathy. Our Sergeevna changed the lives and understanding of nature, the attitude toward it, of several hundred thousand people,” Denis is convinced.
It was after posts about Sergeevna that Nerpaland became famous nationwide. Currently, more than 150,000 people follow the center«s social media, genuinely worried about the fate of this amazing little one.
“The acquaintance with Sergeevna was standard — tourists brought her in April. She was a little white fluffy baby with huge eyes, frightened and lost. About 10 days later she began to perceive Oksana Vladimirovna as her own mother, because Sergeevna lost her real mother 5-6 days after birth. Actually, only Oksana closely interacts with the seal, and that is a deliberate decision. Sergeevna needed someone so she would simply survive, recover from severe stress, but not get too used to people in general,” Denis admits.
Since spring, Sergeevna has grown stronger and noticeably bigger. She is already ready to live independently in the waters of Baikal, but she cannot be released yet. First, the process must be coordinated with the service for the protection of wildlife objects.
“Of course, we«ve grown attached to her, but we understand she is a wild animal, and it»s wrong to keep her in captivity. Just imagine the huge difference between a 10 by 4 meter pool and an entire lake. Baikal is, of course, full of dangers, but it is also full of life and something new, and most importantly — full of hope for procreation. That is the main goal of all living things on planet Earth,” reasons Denis Senotrusov.
The interviewee says that Sergeevna is now absolutely ready for independent life. She has character and the ability to stand up for herself. This cutie can fight back, and seriously. At the same time, she is cheerful and life-loving, so everything should be fine for her.
“No one is interested in the seal”
Denis Senotrusov says the center«s main task is helping seals and their rehabilitation. He and his wife have no goal of keeping anyone permanently. Keeping wild animals in captivity is not a great idea. Besides, Nerpaland currently does not have that option.
“We haven«t yet had seal pups that couldn»t be released, and we are actually very afraid of such situations. We don«t have conditions for year-round keeping. This year such a pet could have appeared. Remember the seal pup found in Irkutsk with a fishing line around its neck? If it hadn»t died, we would have taken it in and would have had to figure something out, eventually place it somewhere in a zoo,” says the interviewee.
For Nerpaland to become year-round, large financial investments are required. The Senotrusovs don«t have that kind of money yet. The center already lives on the family»s income, plus donations from visitors and donations from social media users.
“We didn«t plan to earn money, but we were forced to. We have a small souvenir shop, plus we charge a fee so people can come in and look at the seals. The revenue is small; it doesn»t even cover the costs of maintaining Nerpaland, let alone its development,” admits Denis Senotrusov.
He says the center«s expenses are enormous. Utilities alone consume a significant part of the budget. Besides, fish for the seals is also quite an expensive pleasure. Last season, for example, more than 400,000 rubles (about $4,400 at current rates) were spent on it. Plus household chemicals for cleaning and other necessities.
“We applied to the presidential grants fund, sought support from the authorities of Buryatia and many other agencies. The answer is always the same: ‘The seal is not a Red Book animal. No one is interested in it,’” concludes Denis Senotrusov.
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