A stunted wolf was saved from certain death by a group of amateur photographers who reported to the authorities the pitiful situation of the animal, which had been wandering, for who knows how long, with its head stuck in a plastic container that prevented it from eating.

The incident occurred in the vicinity of a lake in Nagpur, where a group of photographers had gone on an excursion to document the birds and Indian wolves that roam the area, an endangered species that is threatened by the unconsciousness of the inhabitants.

Tanay Panpalia, a 26-year-old accountant from Nagpur, was with his friends taking the photographs when they saw some wolves appear, including one animal that caught their attention: it was a young, extremely rickety and weak wolf with its head stuck in a plastic container.

They understood from the animal’s stumbling and weakness that it was in danger. Seeing him so thin compared to the other members of the herd, Tanay and his friends deduced that his head had possibly been stuck for days, perhaps weeks, and he had not been able to feed properly.

Tanay decided to follow in the wolf’s footsteps, keeping a safe distance from the other animals in the pack, as they were only three men and could be attacked at any time.

They called the Nagpur Forest Department to ask for specialist help to save the poor animal. A couple of hours later, a rescue team showed up at the spot to attend to the case and rid the wolf of its misfortune.

Tanay explained to the media:

“It was a plastic container, which is often used by local villagers as a household item to store food. Villagers throw unused containers wherever they can, leading to such mishaps with wild animals.”

Authorities deduced that the wolf had stuck his head into the container to eat some leftover food, and when he tried to pull it out, it was impossible for him to free himself. Fortunately for him, the container had holes in it, allowing him to breathe and drink some water, without which he would have died in just days.

Nagpur forest guards used a rescue kit to tie the animal down while they extracted the container from its head.

The wolf was so weak, it barely put up any resistance. In just a few minutes, it was freed. The rescuers poured some water on him to lower his body temperature, and allowed him to return to his pack.

“The whole rescue operation took about three hours, but it was worth it. I was saddened to see such a beautiful animal get stuck and almost die as a result of human ignorance. As I followed him, I documented the whole story so that people are more aware of how their garbage affects wildlife,” Tanay Panpalia told the press.

He is not the first animal whose life is affected by the waste we humans unwisely dump in natural environments. Fortunately, this wolf was able to survive this painful nightmare.

Share this impressive rescue with your friends to make them see the harm they cause to other creatures by not being responsible with waste disposal.