Firefighters called to rescue raccoon that became trapped in tree while trying to reach a nut

NEW JERSEY -- A greedy raccoon found himself stuck in a tight spot after stretching a bit too far for his dinner.

The hungry animal was attempting to reach for a nut he spotted inside the knot of a tree in New Jersey when his head became stuck in the hole.

  

 

Remarkably, firefighters were called and had to extract the small mammal after a concerned resident spotted it clawing at the outside of the tree.

The Tuckerton Fire Department brought a ladder to the scene, while Wayne Tonnesen, a retired New Jersey conservation officer, began trying to extract him.

  

  

 

Unable to free it by hand, he used an air chisel to enlarge the hole and free him.

Assistant fire chief Lee Eggert said the raccoon stuck his head in the knot to get a nut left behind by another animal.

'He had been clawing at the tree for a while,' he explained.

Once freed from its predicament, the raccoon quickly scampered off with no apparent injuries.

(Daily Mail - March 12, 2015)