- Penelope the pig got trapped in a drainage channel at the farm she lives on
- Owner Malcolm Bennett claims it was the result of a boar’s unwanted advances
- Expert firefighters battled for 30 minutes near Weston-super-Mare to save her
Firefighters battled to rescue a 20-stone pet pig that fell in a ditch after being chased there by an over-amorous boar.
Two fire crews were scrambled to a farm near Weston-super-Mare yesterday evening after the creature, named Penelope, fell into a drainage channel.
A special rescue team from nearby Bridgwater in Somerset joined them and worked for around half an hour to help save Penelope’s bacon.
The kunekune, a resident of Hope Farm in Lympsham is believed to have got trapped in the rhyne drainage system after one of the boars chased after her.
Two fire crews were scrambled to a farm near Weston-super-Mare yesterday evening after a pig called Penelope (pictured) fell into a drainage channel there
Kunekunes are large domestic pigs from New Zealand, often kept as pets.
Owner Malcolm Bennett said: ‘I presume a boar was chasing her or tried to mount her and she fell into the rhyne.
‘I went to feed the pigs and one of them was missing.’
After searching the nearby area he heard the faint grunts of a pig from a rhyne and found Penelope stuck in the ditch.
He added: ‘I tried to get a rope around her and I didn’t realised how deep it was.
He called the emergency services who arrived within 10 minutes and rescued the farmyard animal.
A special rescue team (pictured) from nearby Bridgwater in Somerset joined them and worked for around half an hour to help save Penelope’s bacon
Owner Malcolm Bennett called the emergency services who arrived within 10 minutes and rescued the farmyard animal
Mr Bennett says Penelope is now ‘absolutely fine’ and was swiftly moved to a more secure pen overnight before returning to her usual accommodation.
A spokesman for Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue service said: ‘Two fire appliances from Burnham-on-Sea and the special rescue team from Bridgwater were sent to a report of a large pig stuck in a water-filled ditch.
‘The 20-stone pig, was retrieved by the special rescue team who used level one water safety equipment, a triple extension ladder and lighting.
‘Penelope was uninjured and left in the care of her owner.’
The kunekune (pictured), a resident of Hope Farm in Lympsham is believed to have got trapped in the rhyne drainage system after one of the boars chased after her
Kunekunes are large domestic pigs from New Zealand, often kept as pets