Rhino rescued after jamming its face into tyre

Rhino rescued after jamming its face into tyre

A wild rhino was lucky to be rescued after it got a tyre stuck over its snout.

The rhino, named Mark by workers at one of Zimbabwe's protection rhino parks, was unable to eat or drink after wedging his face into the tyre.

A crew of vets from the Aware Trust charity had to come to his rescue.

Aware Trust wrote in a Facebook update that the white rhino looked "dejected and exhausted" from the ordeal.

"At first rangers thought he'd be able to dislodge it himself but as he continued to thrash around in frustration it became apparent the tyre was firmly stuck behind his front horn stub."

"Fortunately the tyre came off in a few minutes with man power, and we did not have to resort to cutting through it."

Aware Trust says a drought has caused Lake Chivero to recede, exposing pollutants such as nets and tyres.

"Mark obviously fancied some vegetation that was growing right in the centre of the tyre, and once he stuck his nose to the ground to grasp it, the tyre came up over his horn stub."

Mark recovered quickly from his ordeal, back to grazing just 11 minutes later.

Newshub.