Help! Baby elephant stuck 

after falling down manhole

 The baby elephant had to be helped out of the hole 

His startled expression and pleading eyes say it all.

Left stranded in a rather undignified position, this poor baby elephant was in need of some urgent help after he managed to wedge himself in a manhole in Thailand.

After missing his footing and falling down the gaping manhole of a drainage ditch the poor animalwas left well and truly stuck.

The unfortunate accident took place while the elephant was out walking in the street with its owner in Rayong province, in the east of the country.

The baby had been taken out to work in the street by a mahout - the men who drive the elephants - but must not have been looking where he was going.

Rescuers spent three hours freeing the elephant, who was unharmed, by using a bulldozer to widen the hole.

While elephants are used to move large heavy objects in Thailand, many of the animals in Rayong province are trained to carry tourists on elephant treks through the jungle.

Mahouts also use elephants to beg on the streets of many large Thai cities and baby elephants, with their cute eyes and hairy heads, are among the most sought after.

Baby elephants are often taught tricks to appeal to tourists and, although it is illegal in many cities, work the streets with their owners from early in the morning to late at night.

Mahouts control the elephants using a small number of commands and a sharp hook, known as an angkus.

Last month a 14-year-old female elephant was electrocuted in Rayong when she accidentally brushed against a naked electrical cable.