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A duck that survived being shot and spending two days in a refrigerator has now overcome major surgery - despite briefly dying on the operating table.

Florida vets working to repair gunshot damage to Perky's wing panicked when the duck twice stopped breathing.

But they managed to resuscitate the bird, who leapt to fame when she was found alive in a hunter's fridge two days after being shot.

Perky now has a pin in her wing, but is expected to make a good recovery.

Lifesavers

The ring-neck duck entered surgery with vets confident that she would survive the procedure despite serious injuries to her wing, leg and beak.

But they struggled to fully sedate Perky, who briefly lost consciousness, said Susan May, treasurer of the Goose Creek Animal Sanctuary in Tallahassee.

"The first time she stopped breathing a quick thump on the chest brought her back," Ms May told the BBC News website.

"But once the surgeon started sewing her back up she stopped breathing again, this time for 15 seconds."

When a second thump failed to bring Perky round, veterinary surgeon David Hale tried manipulating the duck's beak, before using a needle to shock her into consciousness.

At one point the duck was given pure oxygen through a face mask, Ms May said.

"At that point the vet turned and said: 'I'm sorry, she's gone.'"

The room fell into shocked silence as those present took in the news, but then Perky raised her head and began flapping her wings.

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