A GUINEA pig has been named Kevin after the firefighter who saved its life.

The six-week-old rodent got trapped in the chicken wire surrounding its hutch at 6.30pm on Saturday.

Its frantic owner, who could see her baby pet was being choked by the wire, contacted her local fire station and begged them to help.

Heroic Kevin Haslam, a firefighter from Bolton North fire station, used the station's Land Rover to drive to the house in Crompton Way and managed to gently cut the wires around the guinea pig's neck and free it.

The delighted owner, who had not named her pet, has now chosen to call him Kevin.

Mr Haslam said: "It was quite a delicate job because I had to be very careful while cutting the wires away from the guinea pig's neck, but it was really worthwhile because it could have turned out very differently."