One man in Singapore came across an unexpected sight while on a hike on his birthday.

The man, who wanted to be known only as Mike, told Mothership that he had headed to Mandai Track 7 for a "birthday hike" after work on Jan. 17.

Along the way, he noticed a tiny mousedeer at the bottom of a drain.

It had just rained heavily and the creature was drenched and shivering.

"As an animal and nature lover, i couldn't just leave it like that," Mike said.

Climbed down

Mike observed that the mousedeer had no way out, as one end of the drain led to a fast-flowing stream. He was not sure where the other end of the drain led to.

The drain was rather deep as well — Mike noted that the sides were taller than him, and he stands 1.77m tall.

He decided to clamber down to rescue the mousedeer.

The animal didn't attempt to escape as he approached it, and Mike speculated that it might have been in shock after falling.

Wrapping the mousedeer in a thermal insulation sheet he found discarded nearby, Mike tucked it under one arm and climbed back out of the drain with the other.

Mousedeer passed on to Mandai Wildlife Group

He subsequently called the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres).

Acres co-CEO Kalai Vanan told Mothership that they received a call about a mousedeer "looking very weak and immobile" inside a drain.

The Acres team went down and took over the weakened deer.

"It was a cold rainy day and we provided as much warmth as we could," Kalai said.

The mousedeer was later passed to Mandai Wildlife Group for further care as their facilities were nearby.

Additionally, mousedeer can be very sensitive to stress and transportation, Kalai said.

Members of the public who find wildlife in distress can call Acres' 24-hour hotline at 97837782.

Top photo courtesy of Mike