A coastguard crew came to the aid of a cow after it got stuck on the muddy shore of a Suffolk river.

The Aldeburgh rescue team received a call from Humber coastguard operation centre following reports of a cow stuck in the River Alde, near the yacht club, on Friday.

Rescuers began searching the river but were unable to locate the cow – even after moving further up the river and meeting up with the farmer who owned the animal.

According to the team’s Facebook page, they returned to the station and were in the process of closing down, when the farmer called to say he had located the cow.

The team returned to the last known location and moved 300 metres inland to find the animal, which was distressed but in no danger of drowning as the tide was going out.

With a bit of pulling, the animal came ashore, and after a few minutes, made its way down the bank and back into the field with the heard.