"Mono ... heck, this could be a whole new kissing disease."

"Your mouth was just where!?"

"Just because they're small and cuddly doesn't mean they won't rip your face off."

"Kissing otters: It's just wrong."

On July 29, an old male sea otter beached for the first time at Land's End Resort. Staff at Land's End alerted the stranded hotline at the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward that the animal had been hauled out on the beach, but re-entered the water when people touched it.

Over the next several days the otter stranded several more times, typical for an ill otter. During these haul-out periods, many people approached this animal. Reports were that people were touching it, dogs were chasing it, a wedding party posed for photos with it. One report even claimed that a woman had kissed it and was then selling photos of herself with it.

This animal was reported to have growled and bared its teeth to people who approached it; unfortunately it wasn't enough to discourage some.

While an animal that allows approach such as this may appear friendly, or tame, it is important to remember that a healthy wild animal does not allow approach of humans or dogs. An animal that does allow you to approach typically does so simply because it cannot flee, due to exhaustion, injury or illness.

A threatened ill or injured animal may respond in an unpredictable manner, often being more aggressive than normal, especially important to remember when you are dealing with a toothy predator like a sea otter.

This animal's celebrity status was short lived; it was found dead within a week of its first stranding. It had apparently sought out the relative shelter and easy feeding grounds of the Homer Spit for its last days, which were unfortunately filled with harassment and stress rather than peace.

Another concern is safety. The potential for zoonotic disease exists in these cases. This is transmission of a disease between humans and animals. Several diseases are known to be carried by marine mammals -- Toxoplasma gondii and the bacterium that causes the infection "seal finger," just to name a few.

There also is a potential for possible transmission of disease between your pet dog and marine mammals.

The bottom line is that for your personal safety, and the well-being of animals, it is extremely important that you do not approach, touch, or worst of all, kiss a stranded marine mammal.

Reports from a stranding earlier this year actually included a bystander who attempted CPR on a sea otter. This is not a technique designed for sea otters, and the potential for a successful resuscitation of one of these animals by a layperson is almost nonexistent.

Again, many of these animals end up on the beach because they are extremely ill, possibly dying.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the federal agency responsible for sea otters. According to federal law, specifically, the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), it is illegal to feed, harass or touch marine mammals. Approaching within 100 feet also is prohibited under the MMPA and prosecutable in federal court.

If you find a dead, injured or ill marine mammal, the best course of action is to stop approaching and call the Marine Mammal Stranding Hotline at 1-888-774-SEAL (7325) at the Alaska SeaLife Center. Trained responders will be dispatched to the location.

Kristin Worman is a biological wildlife technician with the Marine Mammals Management Division of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Homer. She is the unusual mortality event responder for the lower Kenai Peninsula, and her job is to respond to calls about dead, ill or injured sea otters.