Raccoon gets stuck head-first in California home's roof

May 24 (UPI) -- A California animal shelter helped a local homeowner with an unusual problem: a raccoon with its head stuck through a hole in the roof.

The Santa Cruz Animal Shelter said in a Facebook post that a local resident called the Wildlife Emergency Services number on Monday to report a raccoon had chewed a hole in their roof and became stuck while trying to climb through the opening.

"Knowing that time was critical, they instructed the citizen how to push the raccoon through the hole so it wouldn't suffocate," the post said.

The shelter said the raccoon turned out to be a mother and was reunited with her babies nearby.

The post said Wildlife Emergency Services personnel are now helping the homeowner "set up a repellent barrier to safely and humanely have mama and her kids move along to a more appropriate home."