Mother and daughter rescue trapped chick from Marine Terrace HDB drain and reunite it with hen

A mother and her 19-year-old daughter rescued a baby chick that had fallen into a drain at a Marine Terrace HDB block after hearing its persistent calls and eventually managed to reunite it with its mother hen.

The incident happened on Sunday afternoon when the mother and her daughter, Cadence, had gone out to buy some things, according to MS News. They initially heard chicks chirping but did not pay much attention because a family of junglefowl lived in their estate.

When they returned to the area at about 3.50pm, however, they heard a single chick still chirping loudly.

Curious about where the sound was coming from, the pair searched the area and found the chick trapped inside a drain in front of an HDB block.

“Whenever we go near, it will run, and it ran further and further away,” the mother told MS News.

A plastic bag becomes part of the rescue plan

Determined to get the chick out safely, Cadence ran upstairs to get her father to help while her mother stayed with the bird.

The family then devised a plan to remove a drain grate and place an open plastic bag near the chick. The pair chased the chick down the drain and into the bag, allowing them to lift it out.

The mother later recounted the rescue in an original Facebook post, saying they had heard the chick's “desperate call” while going out to buy food and again on their return, suggesting it had been trapped for around 30 minutes.

The post said the family believed the chick could be one of the birds belonging to a junglefowl they knew as Bruce.

Chick reunited with its mother

After rescuing the chick, the mother and daughter searched for its hen. They eventually found the mother, named Bella, at another block with the other chicks.

The rescued chick was then reunited with Bella and the rest of the chicks.

In her Facebook post, the mother described herself as the more anxious one during the rescue, while saying her daughter remained calm.

She also jokingly warned the chick to stay safe and not fall into the drain again, saying otherwise her daughter would not return to her hall because she would be worried about the bird.

Facebook video draws praise

The rescue video was posted on Facebook on 23 August and had received around 10,000 views when the article was written.

Viewers praised the mother and daughter for helping the chick, with comments including, “Very kind of you and your daughter, thank you!” and “Thank you very much, ladies! Y'all are superheroes~”

Other commenters praised the mother's humorous reactions in the video, while one described the rescue as “the best post I read today” and thanked the pair for saving the chick.

Another commenter wrote that the chick and its mother “will never forget your kindness”.

The rescue ended with the chick safely back with Bella and the other chicks after its unexpected trip into the HDB drain.