THE rescuers of a badly injured seal pup weren't sure what to name her — until she took a liking to a certain brand of washing up liquid.

Two-week-old Fairy was found with severe bite marks and an eye wound when she was washed up at Tintagel.

The fluffy white seal pup was taken to the National Seal Sanctuary at Gweek, near Helston, and treated in its hospital unit.

As a result, according to Tamara Cooper, head of the Animal Care Team, the pup — only its second rescue of the season — has grown extremely choosy.

"Being injured and so young means that all the equipment we use at the sanctuary must be thoroughly sanitised. Fairy washing up liquid is perfect for this as it isn't harmful to the young pups like some chemicals can be. After getting familiar with Original Fairy being used to clean her pen, the tubes that feed her and other equipment, she now won't allow any other formula of Fairy to be used."

Tamara added: "We once used other scents of washing up liquid, including apple and lemon, and Fairy the Seal didn't like it at all. She wouldn't go anywhere near the equipment we had used on it and looked really miserable."

After hearing about the obsession Fairy has developed with the washing up liquid, manufacturers Procter and Gamble sent a crate load to the sanctuary.