Rescuers save porcupine from drowning in watery pit

Two men saved a porcupine which was about to drown in a watery pit.

Residents of Sirsi town in Karnataka, India, spotted a porcupine in a 15-feet deep pit, which had been dug to lay the foundation of a building.

They called forest department employees who quickly arrived at the scene to help the stricken animal.

The rescue was difficult as it had rained overnight and the pit was filled with water. The porcupine had swum to the edge of the pit but was unable to climb up.

Getting down to the pit would be risky as the distressed animal had flared its quills and was ready to attack anyone who dare to approach it.

Rescuers then slipped a rope around the neck of the stranded animal and pulled it out of the pit.

''The porcupine kept slipping back to the pit and we actually pulled it out thrice. The rescue took nearly three hours,'' said one of the rescuers.

The porcupine was later released in a nearby forest.