Agra: After a harrowing three-hour rescue operation, two male hyenas were rescued from a well in Agra district, with one of the two animals sustaining injuries.

Once the injured animal is declared fit, both hyenas will be released back into the wild

On Wednesday morning, residents of Pinahat woke up to the sound of distress cries of some animal echoing from a well. On reaching there, they were shocked to find two heynas trapped inside an approximately 25-feet-deep dry well.

A four-member rescue team comprising trained rescuers, along with two forest officials, arrived on the scene and started the rescue operation.

As they could not lower two cages into the narrow well simultaneously, the team had to lower them one by one, keeping in mind their as well as people’s safety.

“One hyena has sustained injuries in the mandible (jaw bone) that has led to swelling in the lower jaw. Both hyenas are currently undergoing treatment,” said Dr Ilayaraja, Deputy Director – Veterinary Services of Wildlife SOS.

Kartick Satyanarayan, co-founder and CEO, Wildlife SOS said: “Such cases have been increasing in the recent years and the main reason behind this appears to be lack of proper fencing around wells. We must work closely with the local communities to address this problem.”

Earlier this year, Wildlife SOS rescued a severely injured hyena from a well in Fatehpur Sikhri but the animal succumbed to its injuries, he said.

“Pinahat is located in the Chambal forest range, which is home to unique wildlife species such as striped hyenas, mugger crocodiles, gharials as well as several turtle species,” Satyanarayan said.

Once the injured animal is declared fit, both hyenas will be released back into the wild.

Wildlife SOS has also launched a petition to invite public participation to highlight the issue of open and abandoned wells that pose a threat to both human beings as well as animals.