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Firefighters cut roof off horsebox to free horse trapped on breast bar


  • A two-year-old horse had to be cut from a horsebox by firefighters after he became stuck while trying to jump over a partition.

    The bay had become wedged on top of a fixed breast bar in the rear-facing small lorry and could only be removed by cutting the roof off the box.

    Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) were called to the scene at a yard in Isle Lane near Bicton in Shrewsbury at around 8.45am on Tuesday (17 July).

    The horse, called Moo, was sedated by a vet from Stretton Hills Veterinary Practice before he was lifted to safety by a crew of SFRS’s trained large animal rescue specialists.

    In a statement, Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “Crews released Moo safely by cutting away the roof and lifting the sedated Moo out of the box with our rescue tender.

    “After letting Moo regain feeling in his legs, he was released from the harness and escorted into a nearby field where he’s now recovering.”

    Moo was reported to be doing well after his ordeal, which lasted more than an hour and a half.

    A spokesman for SFRS said it was one of the few fire and rescue services in the country which has a dedicated large animal rescue team.

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    “Shropshire is a largely rural county with a lot of equestrian interest, so it’s not an uncommon experience for us,” he told H&H.

    “We rescue horses from a variety of situations, and even have a large wooden horse we use in training.”

    For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

    In this week’s edition, out 19 July, don’t miss our preview on the Royal International Horse Show, including stories from some of the most iconic trophies, plus we meet the Bunn family at Hickstead. Also, in this week’s H&H interview we speak to top eventer Kitty King and we go behind the scenes at Goodwood Racecourse. In ‘Vet clinic’, we discuss foot ligaments and how horses can bounce back from related injuries, and check out our reports from the junior and young rider European Championships across the disciplines, plus polo, showing action and much more.

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