Mangaluru : Animal rescuer Rajni Damodar Shetty, 40, rescued a stray dog that had fallen into a 30-foot deep well near Ballalbagh on Thursday.

Rajni told that children found that a dog had fallen into a well. They immediately alerted locals and many people rushed to save the dog by using tyres.

“The moment I received a call, I rushed to the spot. The dog may have landed in the well in the morning and it was already 2pm when I got there. The animal was scared. I was a bit nervous, but at the same time, I knew that I cannot allow the dog to die. I did not want to take a chance. Locals told me that I should get into the well only if I was confident, and should not risk my life,” she said.

Further, Rajni explained that it is an unused well with at least 10 feet of water in it.

“With the help of a rope tied to my waist, I got into the well. The dog had managed to sit in a corner of the well, and was initially scared; it even tried to bite me. The moment I petted it; it became friendly. I was quick to tie a rope around it and the moment it was secure, people from top pulled the dog out first ,and with the help of ropes, I climbed out of the well,” she said.

Rajni has been feeding stray dogs for almost a decade. “Every night between 12am and 2am, we feed nearly 150 dogs of the city. About 8 kg rice mixed with leftover chicken is boiled and offered to the dogs. I have also been rescuing and treating injured birds, animals and snakes at my house, before releasing them into the wild,” she said.