A crew of firefighters had one of their strangest ever calls when vets needed help moving a two-tonne rhinoceros with toothache.
The team, more used to lifting heavy vehicles or debris from collapsed buildings, were brought in to Edinburgh Zoo.
Eight-year-old Bertus was medicated by vets, then firefighters had to work out how to winch the greater one-horned Indian rhino into a safe position for zoo staff to work.
Newcraighall station manager Willie Pollard said: "Being requested to support Edinburgh Zoo in the moving of their rhinoceros is one of the strangest special services I have undertaken.
"The task of safely moving an animal of this size clearly presents a number of challenges.
"But by jointly working with zoo staff, we were able to formulate a plan which involved winching and pulling equipment, using techniques normally used for either road traffic collisions involving heavy vehicles or in the event of a building collapse.
"These techniques allowed us to reposition the animal, thereby creating a safe working space for the dental team to repair the tooth."
Bertus has now made a full recovery from an operation and is eating comfortably, staff said.
Simon Girling, head vet at the zoo, said: "Bertus's operation was a great success and even though it was a minor tooth operation, it involved a massive team of people all working together to ensure the operation went smoothly."
