An Australian vet put his arm into the throat of a rare shark to save the animal after it swallowed a hook attached to a long metal pole.

David Blyde reached between the jaws of the 10-foot (3 metre) gray nurse shark to dislodge the hook, which was stuck in the animal’s digestive tract.

The gray nurse shark is less dangerous than its cousin, the Great White or White Pointer, but its bite can still do serious damage.

When the shark was found by two divers in Australia, it had a 4ft gaff - a hooked pole used to haul big fish on to boats - wedged in his mouth.

One of the divers, John Natoli, said: “Although it did not appear to be suffering in any way, it was obvious it wouldn't be able to hunt and eat and would die.”

The shark was swimming with a group of others near Byron Bay, 500 miles (800 kilometers) north of Sydney.

After the animal was captured and placed in a holding tank, rescuers pushed a stiff plastic pipe into the shark’s throat. Mr Blyde then reach down through the pipe to free the hook.

“As a veterinarian you often end up putting your hands in places that people find somewhat unattractive,” Mr Blyde told Seven Network television.

The gray nurse shark is one of Australia’s most endangered marine species after being fished to near-extinction, with some estimates running as low a fewer than 300 animals left in the wild in waters off the country’s east coast.

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