SAN DIEGO (CBS 8) - A young walrus has been reunited with the SeaWorld trainers who helped hand-raise him.
The 1,000-pound pacific walrus named Mitik arrived at SeaWorld San Diego on Monday, and is already exploring his new habitat at Wild Arctic.
Mitik was rescued after being found orphaned off the coast of Alaska in 2012.
He was taken to the Alaska Sea Life Center where two SeaWorld trainers were sent to help rehabilitate him.
"He spent hours and hours just sitting on my lap. That's how I spent a lot of my days in between feedings is just holding this little guy on my lap," said a SeaWorld animal trainer.
Mitik was deemed non-releasable and lived at two other marine centers before being transferred to San Diego this week.