Leopard saved from drowning in a 30 ft deep well in Maharashtra

Nearly seven year old female leopard escaped a narrow brush with death after falling into a 30 foot deep well in Yadavwadi village located in Belhe, Otur range.

The animal was rescued by Wildlife SOS & the Forest Department and is currently under observation at the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Center.

In an unexpected turn of events, an adult leopard found itself on the verge of drowning in a 30 foot deep open well in Yadavwadi village, Otur on Thursday.

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A local farmer approached the well to turn on the pump in the morning and was startled to see the helpless eyes of the trapped animal staring up at him from the well.  Fearing that the leopard may not survive much longer in the waist deep water, he immediately alerted the forest department who in turn called the Wildlife SOS team that manages the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Center in Junnar.

While the Wildlife SOS team drove nearly 40 kilometres to reach the location, a team of forest officers rushed to the village to assess the situation. With the help of the villagers, they lowered a wooden ladder into the well so that the terrified leopard could clamber onto the makeshift platform for temporary support. Once the Wildlife SOS team arrived at the scene, a trap cage was lowered into the well, it’s open door angled towards the leopard. Almost grateful for a dry spot to move onto, the leopard jumped into the cage and was quickly lifted out of the well. Meanwhile, the Forest Department managed the crowd of curious onlookers that were milling about, to prevent any unnecessary panic or resultant mishaps.

The trap cage was carefully loaded onto the back of the Wildlife SOS rescue vehicle and the leopard was taken to the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre for observation and any required treatment.

Dr. Ajay Deshmukh, Senior Veterinarian at the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre said, “The leopard is a female, a little over 7 years old. The animal is exhausted and in severe shock because of the ordeal, and will be kept under observation for a few days till she is deemed fit for release.”

Mahendra Dhore, Wildlife SOS Veterinary Assistant said, “As leopards are territorial animals, their survival in the wild reduces if they are released in a different area. Therefore it is essential to release them in the vicinity of where they are rescued. Once she has fully recovered, we will release the animal back into its natural habitat.”

Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder & CEO of Wildlife SOS said, “We receive rescue calls about animals trapped inside wells, very often. The wells in most villages remain exposed due to lack of proper net covers and they pose a particular danger to Indian leopards, a threatened species nearing extinction. We are glad to see that people are becoming more sensitized towards the wild animals that share the surrounding habitats, and are making it their priority to reach out to our team and the forest department in such emergency situations.”

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B.C. Yele, Range Forest Officer, Otur said, “Otur is a leopard prone area and these animals’ frequent villages in the neighbourhood in search of easily available prey such as poultry and livestock. This often leads to various conflict situations but we work closely with Wildlife SOS to tackle such incidents.”