Firefighters in the US state of Oregon have had to use all their shovelling skills to do a delicate job: dig a camel out of a sinkhole.

They were called by the Clackamas County owners of the 1,500lb (680kg) animal, named Moses, who said they were simply unable to free him.

The rescuers had to dig for hours to rescue Moses, whose long skinny legs were deep in the mud.

A veterinarian later checked the animal and said he was unhurt.

The firefighters got a call from the animal's owners late on Tuesday.

They said they had tried but failed to pull Moses out of the sinkhole at their rural Oregon City property.

The owners also said they were worried that the animal would break his legs if he tried to free himself while still partially buried.

The firefighters dug around Moses - who continuously cried and wailed - for several hours and eventually managed to slip straps under its belly and pull him out.

Moses had to lie on his side for about an hour, resting after the ordeal.

He eventually got up on his knees, rose fully and slowly walked to his barn.

This is why we don't bring camels to Oregon.  You can't afford to feed them and they get stuck in the mud. 
::)