Guardia Civil rescues wild fox trapped inside Guardamar irrigation pond

The helpless animal was spotted desperately paddling around the deep, plastic-lined reservoir in Guardamar del Segura. Unable to scramble up the slick, steep banks, the exhausted creature was trapped with nowhere to go.

Concerned locals raised the alarm with police dispatchers, who immediately sent wildlife protection officers from Seprona to the scene. Local Police officers blocked off nearby roads to clear a path for incoming fire crews.

Arriving just in time, Seprona officers carefully lowered a padded catch-pole into the water. Following a painstaking effort to snare the panicked fox without injuring it, officers managed to lasso the animal and haul it up the steep embankment to safety.

The fox escaped the ordeal unhurt and was released back into the wild.

Following the rescue, the Guardia Civil warned farmers and landowners to fit escape ramps or safety nets to deep agricultural ponds to stop thirsty wildlife getting trapped in deadly water traps.