A rogue seal caused chaos in south Auckland on Friday - rushing into traffic, going through a takeaway drive-thru and taking over gardens.
It sparked a considerable Police response - who had their hands full keeping it away from the Papakura public.
On Friday, Papakura got marine life's seal of approval.
"He was a big huge... a huge," said Papakura resident Preity Nabi.
Nabi was among many shocked to look up this morning to see not a dog - but a seal - out their window.
"He went to just one of the neighbour's front door... to knock and say 'hello, hi I came to see you guys', and then he went from this corner down here to the back now - he's still at the back," Nabi said.
The seal is believed to have come from an inlet from the Manukau Harbour before making its way on land to Subway Road. It made a tactical stop to the local KFC.
"The seal just waddled itself through the drive-thru and it just sat there and it was chilling and then crossed the road and we had to tell the cars to stop - for the seal," a KFC employee told Newshub.
After that, it crossed Great South Road and darted into Coles Crescent.
Once it made its way there it bolted down a driveway where officers managed to seal it in the garden with caution tape - leaving homeowners waiting for the Department of Conservation (DoC) to arrive and pick him up.
"They'll come up where there's food - where there's a place to rest," DoC marine science advisor Laura Boren said.
Boren told Newshub in the winter months seals that aren't busy at a breeding site will often go wandering.
"You'll see animals go into urban areas - they'll turn up on the waterfront and we've certainly had another turn up at a carwash in Papakura I think a few years ago so it's certainly becoming a common thing."
The seal has since been removed from the property by DoC and Auckland Zoo staff. It will be transported and released at a quieter west Auckland beach.
