SUN CITY WEST, Ariz., May 16 (UPI) -- Workers at an Arizona golf course said they managed to rescue a coyote pup covered with cactus spines.
The pup was discovered Tuesday at the Pebblebrook Golf Course in Sun City West, completely covered in cholla cactus clumps, The Arizona Republic reported.
"I was shocked to see this little one tumbling over and over and over, covered head to foot with these little chunks of cholla," said nearby resident Gwen Maxwell, who first spotted the pup. "On my goodness, it put me in shock it was so horrible to see."
Maxwell said she called for help and followed the pup as it wandered onto the golf course.
Eventually, Jose Soto, a Pebblebrook Golf Course maintenance worker, and Assistant Superintendent Shawn Bordine arrived on the scene.
"He was right there, he could hardly move," Bordine said of the coyote. "He was covered. It was life-threatening and he would have died within hours."
Bordine and Soto then worked together to remove the cactus clumps from the pup's body. Bordine pulled seven large cholla clumps and about 20 to 30 smaller ones from the pup.
"For a little animal like that that it would have been pretty deadly and painful," said Bordine.
After the ordeal was over, the pup was released and it ran back to its mother. Neither Maxwell nor Bordine have seen the pup or its family since Tuesday.
