Back from the dead... terrier freed after 19 hours stuck in a pipe

THIS was the muddy but marvellous scene as an inquisitive terrier was rescued after 19 hours trapped underground.

Ziggy, a ten-year-old Patterdale, had followed a scent down a pipe while out for a walk near Ripon, North Yorkshire.

When he did not reappear, owners Lauren Flintoft, 0, and husband Tim, 8, a farmer, spent hours trying to entice him out.

Having been up all night they called in help from the RSPCA, the fire service and a neighbouring farm, and a search operation involving drain rods and cameras began. It took seven people and a digger to find Ziggy, who was stuck in clay 150ft from the pipe entrance. Two tons of earth had to be moved before Mr Flintoft could free him. Mrs Flintoft, a mother of four boys, said: ‘The children were very relieved. There were lots of cuddles for him when he came out, and he had a bath.’

Safe and hound: Ziggy recovers from his underground ordeal

Found you! Ziggy pops his head out of the broken pipe 2

Emotional reunion: Master and pet share a cuddle 3

Digging in: Owner Tim in the trench 1