A PREGNANT cow had to be winched out of a muddy brook during a dramatic rescue operation which saved the life of the animal and that of her unborn calf.

The lucky cow, which is due to give birth in two to three weeks, was spotted stuck in the mud in Ashmoor Common near Kempsey by a man walking his dogs at around 6.30pm last night (Tuesday).

Steven Powell of Lower Sandford, near Kempsey, had been walking his English Springer Spaniels, Basil and Spanner, when he found the cow 'distressed and up to its neck' in the muddy stream.

He walked to the house of he believed was occupied by the cow's owner in Kerswell Green but when he found no-one was in called Malvern Hills district councillor David Harrison.

Cllr Harrison, who took these photographs, called someone on the commons committee who then made contact with the land owner before Cllr Harrison's son Mark called 999.

Cllr Harrison said the cow was stuck in the muddy stream 'in the middle of nowhere', around a mile and a quarter from the main A38 in difficult terrain which proved a challenge for the fire crews who were called at around 8.18pm.

At the height of the incident four fire crews (around 20 firefighters) were at the scene and they had to use an all-terrain eight-wheel buggy and a Land Rover to get to the inaccessible location.

Two crews from Worcester, one from Malvern and an animal rescue crew from Pershore attended.

By the time they arrived it was getting dark so firefighters had to use high-powered portable lights to see what they were doing on the windy, moonless night.

Cllr Harrison said: "It was a difficult operation because of the ground conditions. Even the specialised vehicle found it difficult but the all-terrain, eight-wheeled vehicle was wonderful.

"The cow was very calm. I think it had been stuck in there for quite a long time.

"It was very deep in the mud and the firefighters were more or less up to their waists in the mud. The cow seemed to know the people were trying to help it."

Straps had to be placed under the cow and, once a vet and assistant had arrived to oversee the rescue, the cow was winched out.

Cllr Harrison praised the firefighters, the vets and Mr Powell who he said 'deserved a medal'.

He added: "If it had not been rescued, the cow would have died. There's no ifs or buts."

The cow which was pulled out between 10.30m and 11.30pm was weak and was still not able to stand this morning (Wednesday).

Fire crews had to boil water and then transport it from the A38 to put warm water in the cow's stomach via a tube.

The animal was wrapped it in thermal blankets and taken into the care of its owner.

Fire crews did not leave the scene until around 12.45am Cllr Harrison said.