The pups need their mothers for milk, grooming, and protection from wild animals, such as Killer Whales. They will probably die from starvation or gradually freeze to death without their mother. So basically, the pups have to be with their mothers at all times, until they are ready to fend for themselves.

While the mother forages for food, the pup is usually close by floating. The good thing about baby otters is that they can’t sink. Sometimes the pup throws its food down because they don’t like the certain taste. Some pups eat starfishes or others like sea slugs. They often throw temper tantrums. The mother withstands this treatment, until they are around six months of age.

Week by week the pups learn to forage for food, developing a sense of taste for their mother’s food. When the pups are 1 month of age, they swim belly down: when they are 2 months old they are already on their backs, swimming. By two-and-a- half months they lose their baby fur. They also learn to handle spiky sea urchins, pinching crab claws, and to break shells with a rock.

The pups stay with their mothers for an average of 6 months, to learn survival skills. Pups also tend to get spoiled by their mothers. Some fully grown pups beg for food, or to get a ride on their mothers’ bellies, some even try to get a suck of their mothers rich and fat milk, which contains 20 to 25% fat. Mothers are tolerant…. until weaning time.

Researchers do not know much of the weaning process, but one scientist have seen mothers leave their fully grown pup for another male otter to mate again. It is still a little unsure, though.

It has also been known for mothers and their offspring to reunite somewhere along their life. Mothers are usually loving with their long be gone pup, but do not let the grown pups throw temper tantrums, or throw them around.

Some mothers that lose a pup try to make it come back to life by pretending it is alive by grooming it, or by trying to feed it. One mother that lost her pup found a bottle, and pretended it was alive, trying to feed it, groom it, and carrying it on her belly. It also has been known for mothers that lost a pup to adopt an abandoned or orphaned pup, sadly some mother otters get fed up with their new child. One pup was found on a beach when their adopted mother abandoned it, possibly for another male mate.