Calgary couple frees 'poor little skunk' from peanut butter jar prison

A Calgary couple showed some serious bravery this week when they freeda skunk imprisoned by a jar of peanut butter.

The stinky critter had managed to get its head stuck when it tried to lick the jar clean.

• Have you ever rescued an animal that gotstuck in something? Share your stories in the comments section andemail yourpicturestocalgaryphotos@cbc.ca

"We really felt for this poor little skunk who was kind of zigzagging across our street," KellyCrydermantold theCalgaryEyeopeneron Thursday.

She and her husband, Dean Hill, spotted the struggling skunk when they were heading to work on Wednesday morning.

There was not very much peanut butter in the jar.- Kelly Cryderman, skunk rescuer

"We followed for him a bit, because we couldn't stand to leave. We were worried he was going to be hit by another car and the magpies started hopping around him on the sidewalk. He did look weak ... and I think those magpies could tell."

Cryderman phoned the City of Calgary, but was told they couldn't do anythingand to callAlberta Fish andWildlife. However, theoffice was closed for severalmore hours.

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The skunk found shelter under a parked car. Exhausted, it sat down. That's when Hill decided to act.

"He gave the jar a good yank and it came off. And we all ran away," Cryderman said.

To their surprise, the skunk didn't spray. It just stayed under the car.

"Who knows how long he had the jar on his head. He needed some time to recover," she said.

When they got home from work at the end of the day, the skunk had left the scene. Cryderman can only assume that it was frolicking in a park, rejoicing over its newfound freedom and full belly.

"There was not very much peanut butter in the jar."

There appears to bearash of skunks getting their heads stuck in jars and cupsacross Canada:

• Paramedic in Peel dons Ebola gear to rescue skunk with cup
• Skunk with head stuck in jar rescued by B.C. woman
• North Bay police free skunk with its head trapped in McDonald's cup

Just this week, a man from Orillia, Ont., liberated a skunk from a Coke can. He uploaded a video of the rescue to YouTube.

With files from the Calgary Eyeopener