Middletown Animal Control officers responded Tuesday to a report of an animal trapped in a storm drain that initially sounded like a dog barking from underground, according to the agency’s social media account.
When the first officer arrived at the scene in Middletown, Connecticut, what was visible through the grate “looked like possibly a rat covered in mud and water,” the department said.
The officer requested assistance from the Middletown Fire Department, which sent a crew to lift the heavy drain cover. Once the grate was removed, the rescuers fished the animal out with a net.
“It turned out to be an infant raccoon,” the Animal Control post stated. “The poor thing was freezing cold and a mess.”
The baby raccoon was rushed to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator, where staff gave the animal a warm bath and medical attention. Officials said they intend to return the raccoon to the wild once it is old enough to survive on its own.
The rescue was the latest in a series of animal extrications by emergency crews in the region. Earlier this month, MSI reported that Connecticut firefighters freed a young goat stuck in a utility trailer in a separate incident.