A kangaroo nicknamed ‘Brad Pit’ was rescued after it fell around 23 feet down an open abandoned mine shaft.
In heartwarming footage, Manfred Zabinskas from Five Freedoms Animal Rescue led a team of volunteers in Drummond, Victoria, Australia.
He abseiled down the mine shaft after darting the kangaroo and assessing its health, before the team lifted the animal out.
A kangaroo nicknamed ‘Brad Pit’ was rescued after it fell around 22 feet down an open abandoned mine shaft in Drummond, Victoria, Australia
Manfred Zabinskas from Five Freedoms Animal Rescue abseils into the pit to rescue the unconscious roo after it has been darted
In the video, Mr Zabinskas says ‘hello’ as he looks down into the pit at the kangaroo, before saying ‘look at you’.
The roo nervously looks back up as the camera zooms in, before it cuts to Mr Zabinskas and another volunteer returning to the pit with climbing equipment.
He darts the kangaroo with a tranquiliser and climbs down into the pit once it has fallen unconscious, before wrapping it in a bags to be attached to a rope.
The team pull the kangaroo up carefully to avoid knocking rocks on to him and once they bring the animal to the surface Mr Zabinskas unzips the bags and strokes his head.
After an interview in which Mr Zabinskas explains the rescue, the video cuts to a clip of the wildlife rescuer feeding Brad the following day in care.
The volunteers carefully pull the unconscious kangaroo in a black bag up the mine shaft to avoid knocking rocks on to him
The video was shared first by the rescue group on June 13 on the day of the rescue, and the group has been sharing regular updates on Brad Pit since then.
Representative from Five Freedoms Animal Rescue Georgie Purcell said the rescue took about an hour and a half to complete.
Georgie said: ‘It was somewhat complex, and he was heavy!’
The group said: ‘He’d been clawing at the walls with no escape, but thankfully didn’t appear to have been down there too long.’
The kangaroo was found by two young children playing near the mine shaft, who alerted Wildlife Victoria hotline.
The kangaroo was estimated to have fallen around 23 feet (seven metres) down the abandoned mineshaft
Mr Zabinskas unzips the bags and strokes Brad’s head once the team managed to get him up to the surface
Fortunately, it was estimated that he was stuck down there for no more than a day.
The kangaroo was cared for at the shelter until he recovered from the ordeal and was released back into the wild.
‘Initially rescuers thought he was okay, but upon assessment back at the shelter, Brad Pit was a little worse for wear.
‘He had swollen feet and needed some time in care with antibiotics and anti-inflammatories to get well enough for release.
‘Mine shafts are scattered around many areas of Victoria, and something needs to be done to stop wildlife falling into them.’