40 people rush to help horses stuck in mud up to their bellies in CT. See the rescue
A team of 40 people and fire rescue personnel waded through water and thick mud to save two horses that were trapped up to their bellies at a rescue farm in Connecticut, photos show.
The horses — Damascus, Beau, and one other horse — “thought it would be fun to take a short cut from the pasture back to the barn and cut through the swamp,” and two of them got stuck, someone from Stirrup Fun Stables Rescue said on Facebook on Saturday, May 11.
“We were able to walk 1 out but the other 2 sunk in and the suction caused by the mud made it impossible for the horses to get out on their own,” Jeanna Prink said in the post.
Personnel from the Lebanon Volunteer Fire Department arrived and “quickly determined that this was going to require a Fire Dept response,” the department said on Facebook.
The farm and fire department called the Durham Animal Response Team (DART) for help, as the team had experience freeing large animals stuck in mud, officials said in the post.
The team of about 47 people, including Stirrup Fun Stables Rescue volunteers, spent about five or six hours wading through the swamp, Prink said.
The team accessed the area with a side-by-side, a farm truck and cargo truck, and shuttled in “ropes, wood, saws, plywood, rescue equipment,” veterinary supplies, and food and water, fire rescue officials said.
The team cleared a roadway near the forest and built a makeshift bridge with logs, cribbing, plywood and signs to access the area of the woods where the horses were stuck, officials said.
The plan was to roll the horses out of the waist-deep mud on a sled. The “significant manpower” of the team ended up being able to guide the horses out on their own, officials said.
It took about half an hour to free each horse, officials said.
Damascus, a big Percheron horse, was stuck more deeply in the mud than the lighter horse Beau, the rescue facility told McClatchy News over the phone.
He’d been stuck in the mud and water for seven hours, officials said. Vets determined both horses were in “mild distress,” but the team was able to warm both horses using blankets and calm them down enough so they could “happily” eat some fresh hay, officials said.
Someone posted a photo of the horses after the rescue in the comments.
“There they are, up and ready to be home, eat, and drink some fresh water,” they said. “All the people that came out and helped were amazing.”
Horse owners and enthusiasts shared their thoughts about the rescue in the comments.
“As a horse owner, so much appreciation for taking this situation seriously and deploying the needed resources to help these trapped kids,” someone said. “A testament to your dedication to helping ALL creatures in need. True heroes.”
“Rock stars! Sincere thanks from every horse owner out there,” someone else said.
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