This is the moment a woman bravely jumped into a river to save a stricken young swan that was swimming in circles while "honking and crying".<br /><br />The video, which went viral on TikTok, shows Katie Chalmers enter the water without hesitation, and save the cygnet. <br /><br />Recruitment agency managing director Katie, 43, became concerned after she saw the swan swimming in circles while out for a run.<br /><br />The qualified rescue diver, who thought the bird had been caught in fishing line, sprang into action and pulled the swan from the River Witham, near Boston, Lincolnshire.<br /><br />Katie had to contend with the cygnet's protective mother as, once she got near, it attacked her and she was "clonked by a wing".<br /><br />She soon realised the stricken bird was not trapped, but had suffered some form of episode.<br /><br />Katie took the cygnet to a specialist, who liaised with local vets, and came to the conclusion the young swan was suffering some kind of trauma - but not bird flu.<br /><br />She said: "I challenged myself to run a mile every day for 30 days, so went on a big run into town.<br /><br />"I got onto the riverbank and I could hear the honking of the swans in the water.<br /><br />"I watched this cygnet swimming round and round and the more I looked at it, I was convinced it was entangled in fishing wire.<br /><br />"I got it in my mind it was tied in its beak as was not breaking the circle. It horrified me<br />as it didn't have control.<br /><br />"I thought 'what do I do?' My first thought was to leave it alone and I thought about ringing the RSPCA, but it was bad signal.<br /> <br />"I thought if I'm going to do something. I need to do it now."<br /><br />Katie, who lives on a farm and describes herself as an animal lover, bravely went into the river as the current was calm.<br /><br />She added: "I was half expecting to be attacked by the swan. The mother bird did go for me, but then she backed off and climbed out of the water.<br /><br />"As soon as I grabbed the cygnet both the parents backed off. They didn't like the approach.<br /><br />"I knew as I went in swans can do some absolute damage.<br /><br />"I couldn't have lived with myself knowing it could have been a human-made incident. <br /><br />"But as soon as I picked the bird up it was super cuddly and wanted to be out of that water, sat with its head over my shoulder."<br /><br />The local specialist suspects the bird was suffering from trauma and that it could have also been attacked by other swans, possibly even the swans thought to be its parents.<br /><br />In another act of kindness, Katie is going to pick up any vets bills incurred after taking the bird to the specialist.<br /><br />The latest update, is that the little swan has survived the night at the specialist and will be seen by local vets.
