Grateful sloth is rescued by holidaying couple from its slow attempt to cross a Costa Rica road

This is the cute moment that a slow-coach sloth is rescued as it tries to make its careful way across a Costa Rica road.  

The footage, captured in Aguirre, south-west Costa Rica, by a holidaying couple, starts with the animal less than three feet of the way across the road.  

It uses it clawed arms and legs to heave itself over the tarmac and then makes small pauses, as if to catch its breath. 

This is the moment that a couple on holiday in Aguirre, south-west Costa Rica, stop to help a sloth get across a road more quickly. Their driver picks it up and carries across the road

The couple’s driver then picks up the animal and picks it up as if it is a lifeless teddy bear. 

The sloth seems undisturbed by its unexpected speedy trip across, as it appears to wave at the watching couple. 

The driver then briefly puts it down, but the animal raises its arms above its head when he picks it back up to carry it further in to the undergrowth.

He then looks for somewhere to put it down, before finding a small tree. The animal then clings to the thin branches and appears to make itself at home

Smile for the camera! In an apparent show of gratitude, the sloth stares back at the holidaying couple once it is safely on its new tree

As he looks for somewhere to put it, the comical sloth lies almost-motionless in his hand, with only the slight movement of its arms and claws showing that it is alive. 

Finally, the driver finds a small tree and the grateful sloth climbs on to its thin branches before staring gratefully up at the camera. 

The couple said: ‘It was obvious to us that if we did not help the little Sloth get across the road he might have been hit by a car as he was taking a very long time crossing. 

‘The sloth seems so very happy at the end of the video that he was returned to safety and got a ‘lift’ across the road. It seems that he gave us a big smile,’ they added.